March 27, 2017
For Mitchell L. Pascual and Michael D. Witt, it was litigation with a twist—fun, fictional and inspiring. In fact, for the two experienced lawyers with Chasan Law, serving as attorney-coaches for the mock trial team at North Bergen High School was one of the most satisfying experiences of their careers.
It was the first time the high school entered the Vincent J. Apruzzese Mock Trial Competition, which is sponsored by the New Jersey State Bar Foundation, and the event attracted more than 220 teams from across the state.
“Watching them succeed gave me a feeling of accomplishment,” said Pascual, who was initially encouraged to help the team by his brother, who works in the school’s guidance department. “I think it was tremendous for their confidence, public speaking skills, strategy skills and planning skills.”
Witt and Pascual are two of the hundreds of attorneys around the state who volunteer each year as coaches on the mock trial teams that take part in the Apruzzese competition.
As the high school mock trial season heats up and soon heads into the regional and state championship rounds, the two first-year coaches said it was an honor to give back to the community and to help instill a respect, reverence and understanding of the role the legal system plays in society in the next generation of citizens.
For Witt, the time coaching the students surpassed many other volunteer activities he’s been involved in, including coaching Little League and soccer teams. He described the mock trial work as a “different kind of satisfaction,” since he was able to use his job and passion for the law to teach teens he’d never met before.
“It was very gratifying to see how far the kids had come,” he said.
The season began with lots of practice. The two civil law attorneys spent an afternoon each week, from October to January, with the diverse group of students, and introduced them to a steep learning curve of trial practice.
“We are teaching these kids a whole new language, a whole new set of rules under which they have to operate, and a whole new topic. It was something none of them had ever done before,” he explained.
During the competition, the students had to be able to argue either side of the case, complete with a cast of attorneys, witnesses and jurors.
In its 35th year, the mock trial program encourages a deeper understanding of the U.S. legal system. Thousands of students from across New Jersey compete to represent the state at a national championship.
This year, the mock trial case was a civil matter involving, coincidentally, a defamation lawsuit that sprung from a mock trial—and the goal for the North Bergen kids was to be ready to compete in the Hudson County finals in late January at the historic Brennan Court House building in Jersey City.
Witt said the experience was invaluable for the students. “It’s something exciting, it’s something that’s challenging and it’s something that forces the kids to think on their feet. That’s a skill that everybody should be able to develop.”
In their debut, the team reached the county finals, finishing in second place behind Union City High School.
“I saw performances out of our students that I would have expected from first-year associates,” Pascual said. “They really came through with their best effort.”
Simply visiting the building was an eye-opener for the students.
“It was fun to watch their reaction [to the grandness of the building],” Witt said.
The experience only whetted the competitive lawyers’ appetites for next year’s event, when they are determined to go even further with the North Bergen High School team.
“We are looking forward to it,” Witt said.
If you are an attorney and would like to volunteer to coach a mock trial team next year, please contact the Foundation’s Director of Mock Trial Programs Sheila Boro at 732-937-7519 or via email at sboro@njsbf.org. Attorneys can earn up to 6 NJ CLE credits per compliance cycle.