Excellence in Action: Mock Trial and Moot Court

EMU Mock Trial Team

Mock Trial and Moot Court are student teams designed to simulate different aspects of US court trials in a competitive environment. Each year, law professors and other professionals in law create a hypothetical case for students to study, research, and craft arguments for. Cases are carefully constructed to engage students' critical thinking skills, test students' knowledge of US law, and grapple with current civil issues our country faces.

Mock Trial, founded in 2002, and Moot Court, founded in 2013, both have long histories of success in competition. Pre-Covid, the Mock and Moot teams had never missed the regional competition since their founding. The competition draws hundreds of competitors from schools in the Midwest ranging from community colleges to ivy league. EMU teams have consistently scored high in these competitions.

A common misconception about Mock and Moot is that these teams are only for political science majors or for students planning to go to law school. This could not be further from the truth. Any student who has an interest in political science or law, regardless of major or career path, can succeed and benefit from participating in these teams. Past and current team members include students from Education, Business, Social Work, and even Theatre. As Dr. Pyle states, “there’s nobody in a college environment that can’t benefit from critical thinking skills.”  

Interested students should email Dr. Barry Pyle about joining.