Our learned friends

Students became barristers for the day at the final of the annual mock trials contest - and impressed the judges, reports Gráinne Faller

'Wait one second. We have to get the wigs!" Vincent P Martin, director of Portobello College National Mock Trials Competition, rushes out and returns seconds later with some barrister's wigs for the students sitting in the courtroom. There's a scatter of giggles and chatter before silence descends. The tension in the room mounts noticeably.

A call of: "All rise." We all do. A door opens as Mr Justice Peter Kelly, Judge Miriam Reynolds and Mr Justice John Mac Menamin walk in. They sit down and the case begins. We are in Courtroom 1 of the Four Courts. A charge of a breach of the peace is brought against a colourfully clothed Sam Miller. She pleads not guilty, the jury is sworn in, then the defence barrister brings a motion to quash the case. The game is on.

This is the final of the competition. Coláiste na Toirbhirte, Presentation College, Bandon is defending; Presentation College Athenry is prosecuting. Each team has already won a semifinal case today, and they have come out fighting on this one. This is the pinnacle of the Public Access to Law (Pal) module, run by Martin and his team. Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, Pal's TY module has proven very popular.

Martin says: "Pal isn't about promoting the legal process, nor is it about recruiting lawyers. It's about demystifying the law and making the workings of the legal system more accessible to the public."

In its TY form, Pal facilitates school visits by barristers, who explain the legal system and stage mock trials in the classroom. The mock trial is the cornerstone of the visiting module. This is all sound preparation for the competition that follows. All schools that participate in Pal are eligible to apply for the competition; because of limited places, entrants are selected by lottery.

The case currently under way is one of two that students had to prepare. The trials are carried out in as realistic a way as possible. Throughout the heats and the semifinals the girls arguing the case at the moment have had to both prosecute and defend each case at different stages. The verdict will be decided by the jury, but the winner of the final will be chosen by the three judges.

The situation being presented to us is one of an environmental protest that went wrong. While protesting against the cutting down of trees to make way for a bypass, Sam Miller and her fellow protesters broke through a police cordon and danced around a tree to pan-pipe music. The prosecution contends that they intimidated workers and ignored Garda requests to vacate the area. The defence claims that the protest was peaceful and that Miller didn't hear the requests to leave.

Each school team has two barristers, a solicitor, six potential jurors, four witnesses and a member of court staff. For this case, the prosecution witnesses are from the Athenry team and the defence witnesses are from the Bandon team. The jurors are a mix of students from different schools. Witnesses are grilled by both sides and remain in character throughout. Particularly funny are the breathy, spaced-out hippies that are Sam Miller and her friend, who are called as witnesses by the defence team. "We love the trees, man," is a frequent phrase during the defence's case. The proceedings are taken seriously by all, however, and legal wranglings expose a surprising depth of legal knowledge in both teams.

The courtroom element is only a part of the overall competition. Last month, when the heats were going on in the Four Courts, many schools entered students into other categories in the competition, such as newspaper reporting, television reporting, courtroom photography and courtroom artistry. The winners of those categories are here to collect their prizes.

Lassara Lynch from Sligo Grammar School came joint first - with herself - for two courtroom sketches, one of a witness in a case and one of Mr Justice Paul Carney. "I didn't expect to win at all," she says. "It was a really interesting experience." The other three categories were judged separately but all won by students from Our Lady's College, Greenhills, in Drogheda. "We couldn't believe it," says Meagan Regan, who won the court- reporting category. "For the three of us to win was crazy," says Aideen King, who as the top television reporter could be giving Sharon Ní Bheoláin a run for her money in the next few years.

Photography winner Sarah Flood agrees that it was a great experience. Photography is something she started to explore in transition year. "I'd love to do it as a career," she says.

Back in the courtroom, the jury has returned with its verdict. Miller has been found guilty of breaching the peace but not guilty of failing to move from the scene when instructed to do so by gardaí. The room falls silent as Mr Justice Peter Kelly begins to speak. He commends both sides for their legal arguments and compliments the acting of the witnesses. The judges' verdict is that Coláiste na Toirbhirte, Presentation College Bandon, has won.

There is a scream of delight as the girls leap up and hug one another. A cup is presented to barristers Anne O'Donovan and Aibhlín O'Leary. The girls impressed Mr Justice Peter Kelly. "The standard was astonishingly high," he says afterwards. "The defence really made some outstanding legal points. That motion to quash at the beginning would probably have been successful had this been a real trial."

Anne and Aibhlín are shocked by their win, but they did their research for the competition. "We met with barristers and solicitors beforehand," says Aibhlín. "People were so helpful." Anne claims to have been terrified before the final, but her nerves weren't on display as she challenged the judges and brought forward motions to have the case thrown out. "I'm 90 per cent certain I want to be a barrister," she says. "We learned so much," says Aibhlín.

To learn more about Public Access to Law and the Portobello College Mock Trials Competition, e-mail Vincent P Martin at palddp@eircom.net