The OBA/OJEN Criminal Law Challenge (OOCLC) – which replaced the canceled OBA/OJEN Competitive Mock Trial (OOCMT) tournaments – was based on the facts of the OOCMT case, R v Kaye. The new format allowed students, who were already familiar with the scenario, to engage with the law around the case.
For this challenge, students submitted written Opening and Closing statements. Although no winners were selected, every student received feedback from a practicing lawyer or a judge. Leading up to the submission of their statements, participants had access to message boards dedicated to a number of discussion topics. An “Ask a Lawyer” forum was also available, where questions from students and teachers were answered by lawyer volunteers from across Ontario.
OBA lawyer volunteers also recorded a video of themselves conducting Direct and Cross Examinations of each witness from the R v Kaye case scenario. The video was posted on the OJEN website for students to refer to when preparing their Closing statements. It will remain on the website as a resource for OOCMT participants in the future. Students will be able to see how real lawyers conduct witness examinations, and teachers can use it as a resource for their classes. Check out the video here.
Congratulations to all the students and teachers who participated in the Challenge under very difficult circumstances! You did excellent work!
Special thanks too, to all the lawyers who volunteered and made the experience so rewarding for the student participants!