Model Supreme Court

Montana YMCA Model Supreme Court

Model Supreme Court

Program Outline:

In the Montana YMCA Model Supreme Court, cases are developed which are similar in nature to an actual case that might be appealed to the real Montana Supreme Court. Youth Attorneys must study research materials provided and apply that law to their assigned case in both written and oral arguments. Youth Justices are selected who will study the briefs and listen to the oral arguments of the Attorneys, rendering decisions and written opinions on each case hearing. A Marshall and Clerk are appointed to assist the court proceedings.

Consistent with the guidelines for Law-Related Education recommended by the Montana Office of Public Instruction, the Montana YMCA Model Supreme Court program is not designed to deliver specialized legal education, but rather is intended to develop an understanding of the values and principles on which the legal system is based.

Cooperating with the focus of the YMCA on Character Development, the Model Supreme Court program challenges participants to accept and demonstrate the positive values of caring, honesty, responsibility and respect.

This program is modeled on an appeal to the Montana Supreme Court. In other words, this is not a Mock Trial competition; it is somewhat like a Law School's Moot Court.
Participants who are Attorneys write a brief, present at least two oral arguments and participate as "Visiting" Justices for the hearing of at least one case.
There is no competitive elimination of participants. All participants are involved throughout the session.
At least two cases are developed. Cases are assigned to participants on a random basis.
Participants who are Attorneys write a short legal brief for one side of the case, with sides assigned randomly to participants to assure equal numbers. Samples and guidelines are provided in this manual.
Attorneys prepare to argue BOTH sides of their assigned case (though as noted above they are only required to write a brief for one side).
Participants are provided all pertinent research material for their cases, thus keeping the program fair to those who may not have access to a Law Library.
Attorneys argue their case in teams of two. This structure is similar to that of high school team debate, though participants in Model Supreme Court choose for themselves how to divide their time and work.
Selected Applicants will serve as Model Supreme Court Justices. (The position of Chief Justice may be elected by participants in future years.)
Justices elected or appointed as noted above serve full time on the bench, and their numbers are supplemented by Attorney participants, each of whom is given the opportunity to serve as a "Visiting" Justice for at least one hearing (of a case they were NOT assigned to argue).
A Marshall and 1-2 Clerks are appointed. These positions are allocated to participating schools in the same manner as other appointed offices.
Participants will do all written work prior to the session. No additional brief or argument writing will be required during the session.
A brief writing award is given, to be judged by qualified adult volunteers.
An Attorney Team of the year award will be given.

Deadlines (subject to change):

January 1: Cases and manual updates will be mailed to advisors.
February 1: Court Case Assignments requested by Advisors
February 15: Applications for Model Supreme Court Justice positions due.
February 15: Preregistration and partial fees in.
March 1: Court Justices announced.
March 15: Legal Briefs and Bench memoranda due.

Introduction to the Montana YMCA Model Supreme Court

Program Guidelines and Participant Roles

General Information:

The Model Supreme Court is designed primarily for Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors. Freshmen are not prohibited from being Attorneys, but it is not recommended.
Participants must meet all deadlines for submission of applications and briefs. Under exceptional circumstances, specific permission for an extension prior to the deadline may be requested from the state office.
A "Brief Book" containing all submitted briefs is made available to Court participants when they arrive at the Youth and Government session.
Participants in the Model Supreme Court are to uphold the Code of Conduct and observe the general rules of the Montana YMCA Youth and Government Program.

Justices:

Whenever possible, all cases will be heard by a Court of seven Justices, chosen as described below:

Only Juniors and Seniors may apply to be full time Appointed Supreme Court Justices. A minimum of four Justices will be selected, more if overall preregistration numbers warrant.
Appointed Justices will be required to prepare a Bench Memorandum on the cases they will hear, based on the guidelines and samples in this manual.
In each case hearing, three to four individuals on the bench will be the full time appointed Justices, with the remaining "Visiting Justices" rotated amongst Attorney participants.
All attorney participants will get to serve on the bench as a Visiting Justice for at least one hearing of a case other than the one they were assigned to argue.

Attorneys:

Participation:

Youth Attorneys will prepare briefs and argue their case in teams of two. Team members may be from the same delegation or from different delegations.
Attorneys will have the opportunity to sit on the bench as an Visiting Supreme Court Justice for the hearing of at least one case (which will not be the same case they are assigned to argue).
Team membership cannot be changed after briefs are submitted, except as noted below.
If one member of a team cannot attend the Youth and Government session, the remaining member will be allowed to argue the case solo if they wish, or they may team up with another individual who also lost a teammate.
When they are not involved with the court program, Attorneys may also testify in committee hearings on bills before the Youth Legislature.

Cases and Briefs:

At least two cases will be developed. Cases will be assigned to participants on a random basis. Participants may not request a specific case.
Teams will be assigned to write and submit briefs representing either the appellant or the respondent position, but not both. Positions will be assigned randomly and participants may not request a certain side. Guidelines and sample briefs are provided in this manual.
Participants will be provided the case and all research material necessary to prepare their briefs and arguments.
Each case will have two basic legal issues that need to be addressed. It is recommended that each team member take one of the issues to research and argue.

Oral Arguments:

Teams prepare oral arguments for both the appellant and the respondent positions of their assigned case.
Teams first argue the side of the case for which they wrote a brief.
Teams will not have to argue different sides of their case on the same day.
Preparing a summary or outline in advance of the session that outlines the main arguments of both sides is strongly recommended.
Teams will present oral arguments for both the appellant and the respondent positions of their assigned case over the course of the session. Preparing a summary or outline prior to the session that outlines the main arguments for both sides&emdash;and practicing arguments for both sides&emdash;is strongly recommended.
A limited amount of time will be available after teams have presented the assigned side of their case to prepare their oral arguments for the opposite side, but participants will need to already have a basic outline ready that they simply need to refine, based on their experiences during the first round of arguments.
As a rule, Attorneys will first argue the side of the case for which they wrote a brief, and teams in a hearing will either both argue from their written briefs or both argue the sides for which they have not written a brief.
However, if due to drops there are an unbalanced number of Appellant and Respondent teams, teams may be asked to volunteer to present their case twice or volunteer to present the opposite side first.
A hearings schedule will be posted in advance. Oral arguments will take place in the following sequence, with the time limits below strictly observed:
Appellant: 15 minutes
Respondent: 15 minutes
Appellant: 5 minute rebuttal of respondent's argument

Appointed Officers:

A Marshall and a Clerk of the Supreme Court will be appointed. These highly responsible positions will be allocated to participating schools in the same manner as is currently done with other appointed offices.
The Marshall serves as an enforcement officer of the court. S/He announces the arrival of the Justices, calls order to the court, announces the case to be heard, serves as timer for the Attorneys and enforces Courtroom rules. This individual must be assertive, responsible and well-organized.
The Clerk of the Supreme Court organizes and distributes briefs, helps schedule hearings, keeps notes on oral arguments, distributes the written decisions of the Court, records all decisions made, and otherwise assists the Justices and Marshall as needed. This individual must be responsible, meticulous and well-organized.
If additional help is needed due to the number of case hearings, an Assistant Clerk may also be appointed.

Legal Research Guidelines

In the case packets provided to Model Supreme Court Justices and Attorney teams, all necessary and relevant case material will be provided for research. Facts of the cases are presumed to not be in dispute. Participants may not add to or change the facts of the cases presented.

Because of the geographic distances in Montana, not all participants have ready access to a law library or other outside resources. For that reason, participants are not to cite any additional material in their briefs or oral arguments other than what is included in the case packet.

This is not to say that Attorneys aren't allowed to pursue additional resources such as dictionaries of legal terms, guidebooks on brief writing, or manuals on the preparation of oral arguments. But they cannot cite or refer to any source as authority in their briefs or oral arguments other than the resources provided. Factual statements or arguments of law must be able to be backed up by the resources in the case packet.

Useful Legal Links

Our Research Links page--We have many links to the areas below plus more resources here!
Montana Legislature--The Montana Code, info on all bills in the 1999 session, plus lots more useful info.
Montana Constitution--view and download a copy here!

Montana Law Links

Montana State Law Library--Start here! This is a very useful site.
University of Montana Law School Library Links and Resources
UM Law School's collection of Internet Resources
Montana Bar Association--Their "Legal Links" page has some great resources!

National Law Links

State Law: World Wide Web Virtual Library--Links to laws in all 50 states!
American Bar Association--This is a very extensive, searchable site. Check it out!
Cornell University's ILL Web Site--This has links to the Federal Code, Supreme Court decisions, rules of legal procedure and many other valuable resources! Searchable!
Oyez, Oyez, Oyez--A US Supreme Court Database, this one with audio links of oral arguments.
Court TV Law Center--Among other things, a pretty nice library area with info on many cases.
U.S. Supreme Court Decisions--From Cornell University. Cornell has an outstanding site!
U.S. House of Representatives Law Library--Includes access to the Federal Code
Cornell University's US Code Area--Searchable Index to the Federal Code.
Chicago-Kent's Law Link Index--yet more links to legal info.
Gryphon's--links to free legal resources; quick links to the US Constitution, Federal code and regulations.
FindLaw--you have to subscribe to this site, but it is a great resource.
US Supreme Court Justices--biographical info and many good links to other sources

Legal Writing Links

American Bar Association's "How to Write the Winning Brief"--A helpful style guide.
The WWLIA Legal Dictionary--A nice dictionary in plain English.
Brief Writing Guide--Our Montana YMCA Model Supreme Court rules and guidelines.