Legal Forums and Debates
Patti Morua-Widdows - Court Division Manager - Team Leader
In a classroom setting or school assembly, legal forums will be conducted with panel discussions using a judge and/or attorney as the moderator. This component has been established with middle and high school students in mind. The panel discussions are
intended to stimulate the students thought process about our legal system. The following panel discussions are available.
An overview of our Justice System: The panel will consist of a judge, attorney, and court staff. The panel will be moderated by the team leader. Students will be given a package of information prior to the discussion to stimulate their thought pr
ocess. Panel members will conduct an active presentation that will teach the students how a courtroom serves as the fulcrum for the scales of justice. Upon conclusion of the discussion students will ask certain questions of the panel members. Students
will participate in an oral quiz after all questions have been answered. At the teacher's discretion, a written exercise will also be available.
Ratification of the Constitution: When ratified, the constitution did not contain a Bill of Rights. A panel will be planned to discuss the ratification of the constitution and legal issues which lead to the Bill of Rights. This panel will consist
of a judge, attorney, court staff, and a teacher. The moderator of this panel will be Thomas Jefferson who will begin with an oration about the rationale behind our constitution.
He will lead the panel through a discussion of why the Bill of Rights was enacted and how it impacted our legal system as we know it today. At the end of the panel discussion, the esteemed Mr. Jeferson will elicit questions from the student audience. St
udents will be asked to write a paper on the importance of the Bill of Rights.
Debates Related to Current Events:Several debates will be staged which are related to topics of interest to students and teachers such as the legal issues behind the search of student lockers, or the freedom of speech and issues surrounding the Com
munications Decency Act and access to the Internet, or the freedom of expression and wearing of certain clothes. These debates will be structured so that the issue and the U.S. Supreme Court's involvement (rulings) will both be hightlighted
. Students will be integral participants in these debates. Students will learn how the courts intervened to balance the rights of the people and the legal issue. Students will be asked to write a short paper about their opinion.
Note:Only the first panel discussion will be abailable for the program kick off on May 1, 1997. The other panels are in preparation and will be available for future events.
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