Recent News

January 7, 2011

Sign Up to Judge Mock Trials

The annual District and Regional Competitions for the Ohio High School Mock Trial competition is looking for attorneys to serve as judges for the 2011 competition.

The District Competition will be held on Friday, February 4 and is in need of 40 attorneys or judges to serve as volunteer mock judges. The competition will be held at the Franklin County Municipal Court, between 1 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

The Regional Competition is scheduled Friday, February 25 and will need 21 attorneys or judges to serve as mock judges. The competition will be held at the Joseph P. Kinneary U.S. District Court, Southern District Courthouse, 85 Marconi Boulevard, between 10:30 and 3:30, with a lunch break.

A 45-minute training session is mandatory and may be attended at the Columbus Bar on any of the following dates and times: Monday, January 24 at noon; Wednesday, January 26 at 5 p.m.; or Tuesday, February 1 at noon. A box lunch will be provided at noon training sessions.

This year’s competition analyzes the fascinating legal question: What are the living family member’s rights to the body parts of a deceased family member? In this case, when an individual dies suddenly in a car accident, the family consents to an autopsy to determine the cause of death. During the course of the autopsy, a section of the brain is removed and sent to pathology where it is discovered that the brain cells are regenerative (or "immortal"). The decedent’s family has filed a lawsuit against the county coroner alleging that the coroner has violated the family’s due process rights by sending the regenerative cells to a research lab instead of returning them to the body.

Contact Donna Sweet at 614/221.4112 or donna@cbalaw.org to obtain a volunteer form.