A Family Affair (ft. Zach & Miah Herford)
May I Be Heard? Episode 6, featuring international Empire alumni, Zach & Miah Herford of St. Peter’s School in Bournemouth, England.
For most Empire alum, the term “Empire Family” refers to the friends, teammates and lifelong connections that we’ve made at Empire competitions. For this week’s guests, however, “Empire Family” is totally literal.
For Zach, Miah and Luke Herford, Empire is a family affair. Zach was the first to get involved with Empire, followed by his dad, Luke, and kid sister, Miah. Zach got involved in 2014 when his school, St. Peter’s in Bournemouth, England, applied to compete at Empire New York. Led by an Empire alum from several years earlier, his team worked their way through regionals and nationals with the hopes of winning a spot at Empire.
And they did.
As Zach practiced over the weekends leading up to the competition, his 12-year-old sister, Miah, watched in awe.
“They did a proper dress rehearsal at school and family were invited to be part of the jury to practice for Empire,” Miah said. “I remember being so enthralled by it all and proud of what my brother and his team had accomplished.”
Little did she know that she, too, would soon be on an Empire-bound team.
“For me, it was a no-brainer to start Bar Mock when I eventually could in 2017. When I joined the Bar Mock (mock trial here in the States) team, my dad had taken over as coach a year or so before.”
Yep, you read that right. Her dad was the coach of her team. Though this could get a little overwhelming at times, she always tried to make the most of it.
“It wasn’t always easy, especially because he was coaching the Empire team and also a different regional team which I was also a part of. But I wouldn't have had it any other way,” Miah said. “I was able to discuss the case with him, which a lot of students could not do with their parents. I also think it made the dynamic of the team more fun because even though he is a teacher, the other students still saw him as my dad and they felt more comfortable with him than another teacher.”
While Miah and her dad were busy competing at regionals and nationals, Zach was busy being a student at uni—or, should I say college, here in the States. Notre Dame, to be exact.
“Doing Empire in New York definitely reinforced my decision to apply to colleges in the US,” Zach said. “But more importantly, I think it made me really want to pursue mock trial when I got to college. Some of the best friends that I made and most challenging but exciting experiences that I had at Notre Dame were through the Mock Trial program.
Having spent most of his mock trial career in the UK up to that point—other than his experiences at Empire, of course—Zach had to adjust to some of the differences between mock trial on either side of the Atlantic.
“I think there are a lot more differences than similarities between American and British mock, not just in the law but more so in the presentation styles, the procedure, and the expectations,” Zach said. “For one, the UK doesn’t object, which is obviously quite a big part of American mock trial. Overall, the biggest difference is probably the presentation styles. Walking around the well of the court is not allowed in the UK, and we don’t do the big emotive speeches that are the staple of American mock trial. It's different but exciting at the same time.”
Luckily, his experience with Empire made his adjustment in college much easier.
“What was great was that the insight Empire gave me into American mock trial actually really helped me get ahead once I got to college and did AMTA [American Mock Trial Association] mock trial!”
After college, Zach stuck around in the States for a little while. He got a job at NJ LEEP, an educational access nonprofit in New Jersey which helps get first generation students from low-income families into college.
“Part of my work there used constitutional law debate and mock trial as a way to help develop the speaking, researching, writing, and confidence skills of our students. It was fantastic that I could use my mock trial experience to introduce these skills to the kids!”
He even ended up coordinating a virtual mock trial program.
“When lockdown happened, I somehow ended up with the responsibilities for coordinating NJ LEEP’s first foray into virtual debates and trials,” Zach said. “It was a new and exciting challenge. It allowed family and friends from out of state to participate and watch the kids perform for the first time, and we were able to have guest judges from all over the country attend.”
While Zach was busy beginning his career—and using his mock trial experience to help him—Miah was starting university herself.
“At UK universities, they don’t have a bar mock club or anything. I do still help the current St. Peter’s team, which had some practice cases they were working on. I really enjoy coaching and helping the students.”
In the meantime, she remembers Empire fondly.
“I think my favorite part of Empire is looking back now and remembering it all because I was a part of this incredible opportunity that makes me smile and chuckle every time I think about it.”
In fact, Zach and Miah were not the only St. Peter’s students impacted by the opportunities and experiences they gained through mock trial and Empire.
“All in all, the experience of Mock Trial is unparalleled,” noted Zach and Miah’s father, Luke. “Very few students get to do Bar Mock in Great Britain, and even less take the opportunity to attend Internationals. Three students from the St Peter’s 2018 team to New York are now studying Law at university. Over the years, seven other students have studied Law as a direct result of their experience with Mock Trial in Britain and America.”
To other international Empire teams, Miah has a couple key pieces of advice:
“Don’t think you are any less worthy of doing well just because you are an international team, walk into the courtroom and show them that you have what it takes. Do the best you possibly can because as soon as you walk out of the courtroom, you cannot go back and do better. Finally, don’t stress too much, just enjoy your time in a different country. When other teams were doing scrimmages in the hotel, my team was out exploring New York. So be professional and do all you can when you’re in the courtroom but when you’re out of it, have fun!”
To watch the interview playback, click here.
Ready for your own Empire Experience? Applications are OPEN for the 2021 Season this Fall. To learn more and how to apply, click here.