E-22s Mock Supreme Court Project

Directions:
Students will be split into three distinct groups: Justices, Petitioners, and Respondents.

Justices:

Mr. Papa will be the Chief Justice.

Eight Students will be selected to become associate justices for the class.
In order for a student to qualify the student must have an A or higher in the class and be voted
in by the rest of class.
As a justice the students must perform the following tasks.
o When they receive the brief from both the Petitioners and Respondents, each judge
must write down a minimum of three questions in response to the Briefs provided. A
total of 6 questions
o When oral arguments begin, The Justices must ask questions about each persons
arguments. The questions must be relevant and designed to have either the Petitioners
or Respondents to defend their stance.
o After oral arguments have concluded the justices must deliberate (talk amongst
themselves) everything they have heard and vote who has won. The vote does not have
to be unanimous.
o After the Judges have decided who the winner of the case will be, Each judge must write
a 2-page Opinion paper about why he/she voted the way he/she did.
Judges must work together to develop the most judicial understanding of the information
presented about the case.
o Judges will be graded on the thoughtfulness of their questions in response to the briefs.
o Judges will be graded on their participation during the question section of the oral
arguments
o Judges will be graded on the thoughtfulness and structure of their opinions.

Petitioners & Respondents:

Students will be provided five hypothetical cases and as a class decide on one case they would
like to try in the class.
The class will then split into two groups, based on which side they would like to argue after
reading the case, either they will choose to be the Petitioners or the Respondents
o Petitioners: refers to the party who petitioned the Supreme Court to review the case.
o Respondents: refers to the party being sued or tried.
The groups will then be further divided into specific roles for their groups:
o A third of the group will be dedicated to research.
o A third will be dedicated to creating the brief.
o A third will be dedicated to the oral arguments.

Both groups are responsible for creating two distinct products: brief and oral arguments.
o The brief is a synthesis of all the research they have found for their argument. The brief
must be clear, concise, and embody all the information each group will reference in your
oral arguments.
o The Oral Arguments are a series of statements, paragraphs, or bullet statements which
each student responsible for the oral presentation must use during this portion of the
project. DO NOT USE YOUR BRIEF AS YOUR ORAL ARGUMENTS! I do not want you to
recite your brief during the oral argument portion. This is an opportunity to expand on
your public speaking skills, do everything you can to make your argument engaging and
demonstrate passion. WARNING: do not get too carried away, stay relevant, stay clear,
and keep yourself in order.
Two-Days before oral arguments, each group must email a copy of their brief to the opposing
group, to the justices, and to me (Mr. Papa) so that everyone has a chance to review the work
and be prepared for oral arguments.
On the day of oral arguments, each group will be provided 15 minutes to present their
arguments, 10 minutes will be delegated for the justices to ask questions, and for rebuttal from
the opposing group.
Each group must work together to develop the best argument then can for the stance they take.
o Students will be graded on research through peer reviews and level of relevant
information integrated in their brief and argument. ]
o Students will be graded on their brief through the clarity of their arguments and the
level of research embedded in their arguments.
o Students will be graded on their oral arguments by the clarity of their spoken arguments,
the ability to embed research in their arguments, and ability to respond to rebuttals and
questions.
When the oral arguments are over the Judges will decide whose case was more compelling.
Once the judges have finished deliberating, they will vote and choose who won, and which ever
group wins, that group will gain extra credit on the next project.