We made it to week 10!! This final week has been a wild ride, with the highlight being the Summer Associate Mock Trial in Orlando.
The penultimate week of the summer included a mad dash of practice, practice, and more practice in preparation for the mock trial. Coleman and I worked very hard right up until the day of the trial. When we were assigned as partners, Coleman and I started with a few phone calls to assign different parts of the trial, discuss case theories, and to strategize how we wanted to argue each issue. The mock trial problem centered around a plane crash. Coleman and I were tasked with representing the plaintiff who lost her husband in the crash. She sued two separate defendants: the plane manufacturer over an allegedly defective part, and her husband’s flight instructor and mechanic for poor training and failing to maintain the plane.
It was not easy preparing to go up against two different defendants in one trial, but we were up for the challenge. At the end of the trial, there wasn’t a winner or loser based on the case itself, which made me feel better that we were being judged on our oral advocacy and trial skills rather than the closed record we received.
Coleman and I each had to do an opening statement or closing argument, lead a direct examination, a cross examination, and argue a motion. I was in charge of the opening statement- and I really enjoyed putting together a story and overview of the case for the jury. I have given a few opening statements in the past in law school, but never a full 10 minute formal argument in front of a live “jury.”
We worked with Scott Sarason and various other partners throughout the week who volunteered their time amid their very busy schedules to help us. They went above and beyond by providing helpful feedback and critiques of every practice. A major theme for the trial was preparation and practice, which we were complimented on by the judges.
After spending hours every day practicing, we celebrated the end of the summer with a party for the Miami office at partner Bob Fitzsimmons’s house on Friday night. He lives in beautiful Coconut Grove and we had fantastic Thai food while enjoying Bob’s signature cocktail.
On Sunday, Ashley and I took an early train to Orlando where we practiced all day. Coleman and I ran through our entire trial twice. For direct and cross examination, we tried to be as difficult as possible as witnesses to prepare ourselves to adapt in the real trial. After feeling confident with our preparation, all of the summer associates went out to dinner together that night.
Monday was the day of the mock trial. We were in the Orange County Ceremonial Courtroom, the same courtroom where the Casey Anthony trial was held! After the first round of motions, I kicked off the trial with my opening statement–and the rest is history! The day just flew by, but it was a great experience. I loved sitting at the counsel table and felt amped up on adrenaline all day. We fought our way through objections, handled our witnesses, and Coleman did a terrific job with his closing.
The party afterwards was a wonderful time. We had an office-wide happy hour in Orlando to celebrate. We were each presented with beautiful custom gavels and Managing Partner Frank Sheppard said kind words about our contributions to the firm. Afterwards, we had a delicious dinner with the mock trial judges and Orlando summer mentors, and then all the summer associates stayed out together to celebrate crushing the mock trial!
This has been an excellent summer and I can’t believe how much I learned in just a few months. I want to thank my amazing mentor Erin Weinstock and the unbelievable RumbergerKirk Summer Associate Program team for an incredible experience. Next stop: 3L year!
