Trial Advocacy

The Stephen S. Weinstein Advocacy Program offers trial advocacy courses that include practical instruction, learning by doing, feedback from faculty and fellow students and trial simulations.

Our civil and criminal trial advocacy courses focus on case theory, trial strategy and tactics, opening statements, examination of witnesses, and closing arguments. Students try the final case in the course in a courtroom before a real judge and jury panel of undergraduate students. Each of these sections are co-taught by two instructors, a judge and a law professor or attorney experienced in litigation.

In addition, we offer trial advocacy courses in pretrial civil litigation, plea bargaining, evidentiary foundations and objections, litigating in a high tech courtroom, and specialized topics, such as Challenges and Obligations of a Prosecutor, Homicide Prosecutions, and Special Witnesses and Victim's Rights. Each semester, students may also participate in either the D.C. Public Defender supervised externship (fall) or the Alexandria Public Defender supervised externship.

Students who want to hone their trial advocacy skills may apply to join the Mock Trial Honor Society, one of four recognized student organizations that send their members to compete in local, regional, national and international law school advocacy competitions.

In the last five years, the students of the Mock Trial Honor Society have won seven national and regional championships, and finished in the top eight in more than 32 competitions. In addition to these team wins, the students also earned numerous individual and special team recognitions.  The Mock Trial Honor Society continues to compete in prestigious law school mock trial competitions around the country, showcasing the advocacy skills developed at AUWCL.

To learn more about the Mock Trial Honor Society and the three other competition teams, please visit the Competition Teams webpage on this website.