Hundreds of USC Law students will hear attorneys present oral arguments before the California Court of Appeal when it visits campus on Wednesday, March 22, starting at 9 a.m. This is the first time the court has held a special session at USC.
Dean Matthew L. Spitzer and Professor Jean Rosenbluth coordinated the visit of the Second Appellate District, Division Two, to offer students the opportunity to see and hear appellate attorneys argue the court’s actual calendar of cases.
“We thought that if we could expose students to a real-life courtroom situation, it could only help them learn and prepare them for practice,” Rosenbluth said.
Shortly after Wednesday’s session, first-year students will begin making their own oral arguments in the qualifying rounds of the Hale Moot Court Competition. This will be the first time that many of the students experience this type of court session.
“I think they can expect to see a wide range of skills and practices,” Rosenbluth said. “The state Court of Appeal hears a myriad of cases. They hear from people representing themselves to attorneys from the biggest, best, most exclusive law firms.”
Nine cases are on the calendar for Wednesday’s morning and afternoon sessions — both civil and criminal — and most will likely be heard, she said.
All first-year law students are required to attend, and the session held from 9 to 10:30 a.m. will be open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis. Presiding Justice Roger W. Boren and Associate Justices Kathryn Doi Todd, Judith Meisels Ashmann-Gerst and Victoria M. Chavez will be hearing arguments in Room 3. They normally hold oral argument in the Ronald Reagan State Building in downtown Los Angeles.
The justices also will be having lunch with a group of about 40 1Ls between the morning and afternoon sessions.
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