Cyber law / Mock Trial Assignment

About The Mock Trial Assignment
• Goal of Mock Trial is to give a feel for what real trial is like
• We can’t have a real mock trial in an online class, but this project is designed to capture the feel of what you would do to prepare for/participate in a mock trial
• I encourage you to watch the recommended videos – especially example opening/closing statements
• Three Parts:
1. Written Direct Examination (90 Points)
2. Video Opening or Closing Statement (90 Points)

Written Direct Examination
• Pick from among the 6 witnesses in the Mock Trial Packet
• Plaintiff’s Witnesses
– Dee Hawkins (Plaintiff/CTI Partner)
– Cam Turner (Layton’s Former Friend)
– Jordan King (Consultant for CTI)
• Defense Witnesses
– Layton Pierce (Defendant/Teacher’s Pet Creator)
– Shawn Newman (Venture Capitalist)
– Alex Hart (Teacher/Advisor)

• Direct examination should include open-ended (non-leading) questions.
• Your questions should benefit the plaintiff if you pick a plaintiff’s witness or the defense if you pick a defense witness
• You should also include the anticipated answers to your questions.
• The goal of the direct examination is to get to the essential elements that you need from that witness to further the overall case. Don’t try to get through every element of the packet
• It’s okay to include information that doesn’t benefit your case if it would be likely to come up into trial and you want to present it first to show to the jury that you’re not hiding it.
• Follow the template
• Consult the rubric and make sure you meet all the elements
• Four page limit
• Question/answer format
• Make sure you introduce at least the required exhibits for your witness

Video Opening or Closing
• Decide whether you would like to represent the plaintiff or the defendant (doesn’t have to be the same as what you did for the direct)
• Decide whether you would like to do an opening or closing statement
• Wear professional attire to the extent that you can. If in good faith you cannot wear a business suit, please do your best to come as close as you can
• Try to get the video recorder far enough away that you can be seen from at least the waist up
• Upload the video as an unlisted video to YouTube and post a link on the discussion board (other options are fine but if you upload to a different place and I cannot access it by the due date you will lose points)
• Consult the rubric and make sure you meet all the elements
• Three minute limit
• Don’t just read your opening or closing statement
• Don’t make things up
• Recommend you review the entire packet so you can draw conclusions from the whole of the evidence
• Ask the jury what you want them to do – “find the defendant liable on both counts” or “answer both questions on the jury form “no” or something similar
• Describe the burden of proof – Note, in this case there are two different burdens of proof, preponderance of the evidence for charge one and clear and convincing evidence for charge two – make sure you explain that in your video
One last thing . . .
• Please don’t learn ANYTHING from the “patent” in this case. It’s super unlikely this app would have been patentable, he never would have gotten a patent in the timeline, and a patent looks nothing like the exhibit.
• Seriously, this “patent” almost made me throw out this whole packet. This is not how patents work.