In order to write up our brief and come up with a solid argument, my partner and I conducted a large amount of research on our case. We researched both sides of the argument, made sure we fully comprehended the fourth amendment, and dove into the case when it was previously tried. From these former case records, we were able to pick out a few key points to build our arguments off of, along with a few previous court cases that could be used as support for our arguments. After a fair amount of research, we typed up an organized Brief that explained the basics of our case.
My partner and I had the most success with typing up our brief. We were able to find a lot of good information that supported our argument, and arrange it in a neat and orderly fashion. Our brief was the base of our entire trial and its amount of detail allowed for us to easily form a script. Having the brief and script up at the podium helped me feel much more prepared to argue.
The most difficult part of the entire project was facing the judges and their questions. It was difficult to answer questions about a case we weren’t really involved with while trying to get our entire argument out to the audience. Being interrupted and not knowing the right response was a bit stressful, but we persevered and were able to give a strong argument.
The mock court case project mostly revolved around collaboration, communication, and critical thinking. We were given a partner to work with so collaboration was required throughout the entire project. We were also able to work with the other pair on the other side of our court case to better understand the case and better prepare to battle each others’ arguments. Clear communication was the goal of the project. When we were standing behind the podium, we had to clearly and confidently take our ideas and arguments and present them in a way that would hopefully win us the case. Communicating with my partner and the petitioning side made completing the project much easier. Lastly, to successfully create an winning argument, we had to use critical thinking. My partner and I had to make sure we used cutting edge arguments that could clearly sway the judges in our favor and have the right evidence to support them.
As a citizen, I can tolerate our Supreme Court system. I believe they take their jobs very seriously and work to come to an agreement that will better the people involved in the case itself, and the entire country that will be affected by their decision. One of the things I would change about the process itself is the amount of time it takes to fully try, decide, and publish a case ruling. Having to wait multiple months or even years to have your case heard seems a bit extreme to me. Shortening the wait time would be my only complaint, but other than that I think they do an amazing job making decisions that will better our country.