At the University of Maryland, mock trial is not only a competitive team but also a co-curricular program with courses offered by the Department of Government & Politics. Undergraduate students from any major and in any year of their studies, including incoming freshmen, are eligible to join the Maryland Mock Trial Program.
Coached by law professors and practicing attorneys, many of whom are former Maryland mockers, students who join the Maryland Mock Trial Program develop skills that are useful in any profession, not just future legal careers. Students will learn to communicate with confidence, think on their feet, argue persuasively, and become compelling storytellers.
Our goal is to compete at the highest level and win our sixth national championship, so being a member of the program requires a substantial time commitment. Participation includes program wide practices twice weekly as well as individual team meetings to prepare for those practice trials. Teams preparing for tournaments typically have practice trials on Wednesday evenings and Sundays during the day while development teams may only have practice trials once a week. Though the time commitment may be daunting, many students find mock trial to be the most rewarding academic experience they have at Maryland.
Each year, Maryland Mock Trial is comprised of five or six teams, allowing the program to accept students of varying skill and experience levels. Each team consists of seven to ten students that play the roles of attorneys and witnesses in a fictional court case created by the American Mock Trial Association (AMTA).
In the fall, teams attend invitational tournaments hosted by colleges and universities around the nation. In the spring, teams compete in AMTA’s Regional and Opening Round Championship tournaments to qualify for the National Championship Tournament. Maryland Mock Trial has won five national championships, which is more than any other school in the country.
Don’t know anything about mock trial? Don’t worry. We’ll provide you all the resources you need. Every year, we have students join the program with little to no mock trial experience who become award-winning attorneys and witnesses.
Join us as we work towards our sixth national championship during the 2021-2022 season! Click here for more information about joining the tradition of Maryland Mock Trial. Stay up to date with Maryland Mock Trial by following us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
Program History
The University of Maryland Mock Trial Program has won more American Mock Trial Association (AMTA) national championships than any other school in the country. Under the direction of the Dr. Noel Myricks, the program was founded in fall of 1989. Dr. Myricks quickly established Maryland Mock Trial as a national powerhouse and won the first of the programs's five national championships in 1992 when both of the school’s teams advanced to the national championship round. As a result, AMTA instituted the “Maryland Rule,” which placed teams from the same school in the same division at the National Championship Tournament to ensure two separate schools were represented in the championship round. Even though the “Maryland Rule” was later repealed, Maryland remains only school to ever advance two teams to the final round of the National Championship Tournament.
