Empire Mock Trial During COVID-19
Empire impacts more than 3,000 students in the midst of the pandemic.
It’s Thursday, February 4, 2021 at 4:30 PM ET (Eastern Time), and the mock trial world is buzzing.
Students in Oklahoma are presenting passionate closing arguments, while their peers in Illinois attend an Opening Ceremony, where a judge praises them for overcoming adversity in 2020.
700 miles away, students in Maryland anxiously practice their roles one last time for a trial that’s about to start.
Meanwhile, out West, the Sacramento County Office of Education puts the final touches on their district’s competition, with their first ever virtual trial just a few hours away.
High speed broadband wasn’t the only thing these programs had in common. Each had Empire Mock Trial working behind the scenes, managing their competition.
On February 4, Empire’s staff partnered with two bar associations, a nonprofit and a public school district to make mock trial a reality for over 600 students.
“Our adoption of Empire’s incredible software during the 2021 virtual competition literally enabled us to have a successful season,” said Judy Spencer, the Coordinator of the Oklahoma State Bar Association’s Competition. “Not only was the software efficient, but their phenomenal staff offered guidance, training, support, and were invested in the success of our program. We are truly grateful!"
The Oklahoma program was one of 16 that Empire partnered with over a four-month stretch, providing software, staffing, educational resources, and planning advice.
During the pandemic, Empire facilitated ~900 rounds of mock trial for ~3,400 students.
How did they do it? Keep reading to find out more.
The Need
“We were in the same boat as everyone else,” said Justin Matarrese, Empire’s Executive Director. “But given the timing of our season, we had to get on the boat earlier than most.”
That’s because in the United States, most state mock trial programs release their cases in the fall, with rounds of competition taking place from December to March. Empire programs are hosted in September and October to prepare students for their local competition. The timing of the COVID outbreak, and the subsequent March lockdowns, meant that Empire needed to begin its preparation over the summer.
So, the organization went to work.
They developed a model for online mock trial that they hoped would be both effective and enduring, lasting well-beyond the pandemic.
“We went back to the basics,” said Matarrese. “We asked, what makes an effective mock trial program? And what makes the Empire program itself unique?”
Answering those questions proved to be the key to Empire Online.
Bringing the Courtroom to You
In June of 2020, Empire launched Empire Online, a new digital arm of the organization that implements high quality virtual programming by leveraging cutting edge technology.
In the short-term, Empire hoped to address the challenges presented by COVID-19. In the long run, however, Empire set a more ambitious goal: breaking down financial barriers to participation in mock trial.
“We hoped, and hope, that a program like Empire Online will provide students in disadvantaged and rural communities, that don’t have access to a local competition, with an opportunity to experience all the benefits of mock trial,” said Amber Rumancik, a member of Empire’s Leadership Team. “We’re eager to see what the future holds.”
But even if Empire’s technology was exceptional, there were still so many questions left to answer. Like, how does one present a case with no courtroom?
“We’d bring the courtroom to them,” said Stephanie Fast, Empire’s Branding Director and architect of the Empire Setup Guide, which provided students with directions for constructing, and presenting in, a virtual courtroom. “We gave them detailed diagrams, depicting where to position their courtroom furniture--down to the exact inch--along with measuring tape.”
What about presenting in court?
“We had that covered, too. We told students how many inches to stand away from the camera, where they should set up their witness stand, and how to position themselves when arguing an objection,” added Fast. “We left nothing to chance.”
On competition day, teams gathered in their virtual courtroom and streamed their performance using an Empire provided webcam, while their opponents did the same. The trials took place via Zoom, with judges seeing nearly identical virtual courtrooms.
In addition to the Setup Guide, teams were provided directions for introducing exhibits in virtual court, and a rulebook featuring procedures for addressing tech malfunctions and the introduction of exhibits. It might sound like a lot of detail. But the organization felt it had no other choice.
“We felt an obligation to try to anticipate any issue that could arise during an online program,” said Matarrese. “For example, if a judge thought that a student must sit while giving a closing, but the student decided to stand, we didn’t want them to be punished for guessing incorrectly. So, we created a rule requiring students to stand when presenting their closing. We prioritized clarity and transparency.”
Empire kept those same principles in mind when the pandemic forced them to innovate for a second time. In August, the organization launched the Empire @ Home (now Empire You) program for schools that weren’t able to gather in a single room, creating additional rules and procedures to govern the new format.
Both competitions centered around an original case, with a burglary being committed in Empirion. Empire commissioned former award-winning mock trial attorney and Minneapolis Public Defender Collin Tierney to chair the Committee.
If it was the case, rulebook, and setup guide that served as the building blocks of Empire Online, it was the tabulation software that held it all together.
Trust the PROcess
The PROcess story is an Empire tale like no other: in just four years, an Empire graduate went from intern to Blue Shirt (i.e. on the ground volunteer) to Director of Competition Operations, teaching himself how to code along the way. Leveraging his mock trial experience and coding prowess, Viran Weerasekera built a software that would prove invaluable during a global pandemic.
“PROcess was designed to handle all aspects of competition operations, both for in person and virtual competitions,” said Weerasekera. “We believed that, if competition organizers and tab directors didn’t have to worry about adding up numbers or pairing trials, they could focus on really important tasks, like increasing access to mock trial and constructing quality cases.”
In 2017, PROcess began as a complex Google Sheet that assisted Empire in tabulating its trials. Just three years later, it was launched as a stand alone software that could handle all aspects of running a mock trial competition, from receiving judge/juror scores to calculating team records.
“The software is really special because it was designed by someone who knows the activity so well,” said Jason Stanford, who not only used PROcess as a coach, but relied on it to run his 38 team North Suburban Bar Association Competition. “It gives mock trial teams and organizers everything they need.”
With just a username and password, a team could now:
Enter and view their rosters;
Enter their witness call orders and team lineup form (i.e. the order in which attorneys and witnesses present at trial);
View their opponent’s team lineup form;
View their pairings (i.e. which teams are facing one another) and all round pairings;
Enter their virtual courtroom by simply pressing an Enter Courtroom button - each team was assigned to their own ‘courtroom’ (i.e. Zoom meeting room);
Access live streams of their trial (both in live time and after the round);
Access all scores and written feedback from judges/jurors, after a trial is over;
View the most up-to-date competition standings, after a trial is over.
PROcess’s unique digital scorecard allowed judges/jurors to enter student scores and feedback in the same place, and allowed competition organizers to automatically assign judges/jurors to trials based on experience level.
“There are too many features to mention them all,” said Craig Irish, the Coordinator of the Sacramento Mock Trial Competition, who used PROcess to run their competition. “The setup was user-friendly, and students loved being able to see their dashboard with competition results.”
PROcess became the key to Empire Online. Featuring an interface for students, coaches, volunteers, judges and administrators, Empire hitched its wagon to Weerasekera’s brilliant software.
Like the versions that came before it, it didn’t disappoint.
“Logistically, it made running a virtual mock trial program stress free,” said Matarrese. “We’re so proud of Viran and incredibly blessed to use the PROcess software.”
Empire Online Competitions
With its model ready to go, Empire hosted its first two Empire Online programs in October and November of 2020. By all accounts, they were a success.
“Empire brought all of the passion and professionalism of their in person tournaments to Empire Online,” said Eric Strauss, coach of the Apple Valley High School team from Minneapolis. “They invested in technology to make online trials a breeze.”
“It was an exceptional mock trial experience,” added Ryan Smith, the coach of the Philadelphia based Mathematics, Civics & Sciences Charter School. “They ensured the experience was uniform for all teams by having a detailed step-by-step guide to creating the perfect online ‘courtroom’.”
In just four months, Empire was able to design and implement a model for running a virtual mock trial program, which included rolling out a brand new software. Because of those efforts, approximately 700 students from 4 countries and 21 states enjoyed an enriching mock trial experience. But while proud, the organization wasn’t satisfied.
“We knew there were state programs that were hurting – that were overwhelmed by the enormity of the task of transitioning to the virtual space,” said Matarrese. “Leaving students without a local mock trial competition was just not an option for us. So, we tried to support other organizations in any way we could.”
Within days of the final Empire Online competition, Empire began receiving emails from mock trial coaches and coordinators, asking if Empire would be willing to partner with local programs.
And with that, the Empire Partnership Season began.
Partnership Season
Helping an organization run their own mock trial competition was a very different type of assignment for Empire. But it wasn’t completely foreign.
From 2017-2019, Empire ran a local competition for high school students in Hong Kong on behalf of ARCH Education. The organization drafted a case, designed a rulebook and flew staff to Hong Kong to run the competition on the ground.
Still, Empire was used to running its own competitions. What would supporting another organization look like? How about doing so virtually?
“The key was to listen to our partners,” said Weeraskera. “We had to listen to their needs to figure out how we could best support them. They dictated our priorities, not vice versa.”
The biggest challenge was one Empire didn’t expect: no one partnership was the same. Programs varied in size, rules, and schedules. Some had a clear idea of the type of help they wanted; others wanted Empire to steer the way.
For example, the Seattle YMCA hoped to license the PROcess software and Empire’s staff training materials, while continuing to run a six regional competition. But in Connecticut, Civics First looked to hire Empire’s team of nearly 30, while consolidating their regional tournaments into one state competition.
“That’s the type of challenge we were faced with - every implementation was different in some way,” said James Gossett, who was on board for all of Empire’s partnership. “It was critical to be prepared; be detail oriented; and to make sure our staff was well informed.”
Empire developed a Partnership Offerings Guide, which provided prospective partners with the opportunity to choose what they needed from the organization: software, staff, educational resources, schedule planning, A/V support, staff and volunteer training, or some combination of them all. The guide offered free resources for Title I schools.
“Everything was new, so it was constantly a learning process,” said Gossett. “And we never rested on our laurels. We were always trying to improve.”
Each week brought a new series of challenges and obstacles, with some weeks featuring four events on one day or trials that would go until 1:00 AM ET. While the days could be exhausting, the work was fulfilling.
“Whether it was running a Closing Ceremony or working with the judge volunteers, we really loved what we did,” said Christian Mancino. “It was a privilege to be a part of it.”
The Impact
From Tennessee to Idaho, Ventura County (CA) to Kane County (IL), one thing was clear: Empire’s impact was real.
“They gave me so much reassurance,” said John Tarkany, the coordinator of the Ventura County mock trial competition. “The communication leading up to the event was fantastic. They followed through on everything they said they’d do and then some, even during a moment of crisis.”
During the quarterfinals, a power outage rocked Southern California and Ventura County residents lost WiFi. What could have been a disaster ended up being nothing less than a hiccup.
“Empire was extremely responsive,” said Tarkany. “All I had to do was reach out, and within seconds, we had a plan. Once 30 minutes passed and the power wasn’t back, we decided to shift everything back by one day. It was as simple as that.”
At the Seattle YMCA, Amber Wentzel had hit a dead end in planning a virtual mock trial competition. But then she reached out to Empire:
“Partnering with Empire for our tournaments was a lifesaver,” said Wentzel. “The software and customer service were above and beyond our expectations. No question or issue was too small for the Empire team - they responded quickly and professionally. With the pandemic creating so much adversity for our 430 volunteers and 580 participants, PROcess was a game changer!
As Empire looks to the future, the organization hopes to continue serving as a resource for mock trial programs across the world.
If it was up to Civics First’s Jon Weiner, that would be welcome news.
“This year's virtual tournament was so well done that we've had teams and volunteer judges ask about retaining a virtual component. We look forward to a long relationship with Empire."
Empire thanks the following organizations for trusting Empire as a partner:
Civics First (CT) - CT State High School & Middle School Competitions
District 219 & NSBA (IL) - NSBA Invitational
Idaho Law Foundation (ID) - Idaho State High School Competition
Illinois Law-Related Education and Resource Network (IL) - ISBA State Mock Trial Competition
Louisiana State Bar Association (LA) - Louisiana State Competition
MYLAW (MD) - Maryland Regional + State Competition
Oklahoma Bar Association (OK) - Oklahoma Qualifying Rounds + State Competition
Rumancik Family (FL) - FL 4th Judicial Circuit
Sacramento Office of Education (CA) - Sacramento Regional Competition
Shreveport Young Lawyers Association (LA) - Louisiana Region 1
St. Charles High School (IL) - Kane County Invitational
Stoooges (CHINA) - Stoooges Invitational
Tennessee Bar Association (TN) - TN Grand Division & State Competition
Ventura County Office of Education (CA) - Ventura County Regional Competition
Virginia Law Related Education Institute (VA) - Virginia High School Mock Trial Program
YMCA Seattle (WA) - Washington (state) Regional + State Competition