Thirty-four Colleges to Compete in Mock Trials

More than 540 students from 13 states will compete in the third annual Polar Bear Invitational Mock Trial Tournament in the Ohio Northern University Pettit College of Law Jan. 17-18.

The ONU undergraduate mock trial chapter and ONU Department of History, Politics and Justice sponsor the event.

"Due to the top competition and the popularity of the event, this tournament continues to grow and attract schools from as far away as California and Maine," said Dr. JoAnn Scott, ONU professor of political science and organizer of the competition. "This gives our students and other colleges a chance to compete against other top schools in the nation."

The event's opening ceremony begins at 9 a.m. in the moot courtroom (room 129) Saturday, and the tournament concludes with an awards ceremony at 6 p.m. Sunday in the McIntosh Center activities room.

Fifty-five teams from 34 colleges and universities will compete in the two-day event. Each team litigates cases in front of two judges, who judge the competitors on their knowledge of the case material. Outstanding attorneys and outstanding witnesses also receive awards.

Participating schools are Bowling Green State University, University of Buffalo, Butler University, California Polytechnic at Pomona, Carleton College, Carnegie Mellon University, Case Western Reserve, Drexel University, Eastern Michigan University, Elgin College, Elon University, Illinois State University, Kenyon College, Loyola University, Marian College, Miami (Ohio) University, Michigan State University, Mississippi Valley State University, Murray State University, Northwood University, Ohio Northern University, St. Vincent University, Sullivan University, The Citadel, The Ohio State University, University of Central Florida, University of Dayton, University of Maine, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, University of St. Francis, University of Toledo, University of Wittenberg, Western Michigan University and Wilmington University.