A QE team were placed in the UK’s top 10 schools in the national finals of the Bar Mock Trial competition – with numerous aspects of their defence case scoring full marks.
The team of senior boys had reached the national final of the prestigious legal competition in Cardiff after competing successfully in three qualifying rounds. They were placed ninth on the day.
Headmaster Neil Enright said: “We encourage our boys to enter such competitions because participation develops their oracy skills, enhances their ability to think on their feet – especially in a high-pressure situation such as cross-examination – and pits them against some of the brightest and most talented young minds in the country.”
“It also introduces them to the pressures and demands of the legal profession – a field to which many of our boys aspire.”
English teacher, Lucy Riseborough added: “I’m very pleased with the result, especially against such strong competition. Our defence team of Laurie Mathias and Mipham Samten was outstanding, and a special mention has to go to Mipham for his 10 out of 10 score.”
The final mirrored earlier rounds of the competition in which mock criminal trials were held in a Crown Court in front of real judges. The QE team took part in three trials, overcoming Woodroffe School from Lyme Regis by 91 points to 82 but losing narrowly to two other schools. This year’s overall champions were Wilmslow High School from Cheshire.
The QE team were the prosecutors in two of their cases and defendants in the third. All the boys took various parts, from barristers to witnesses, jurors, court reports and ushers.
“I was especially pleased to see the way in which our boys took on the feedback from the judges and markers and improved from round to round,” said Miss Riseborough. “The boys had picked up from Round Two the importance of restricting their questioning to crucial facts. They also performed with confidence, which put the opposition under pressure.”
The Bar Mock Trial Competition, now in its 27th year, is run by the Citizenship Foundation and supported by the Bar Council of England and Wales, the Faculty of Advocates, the Bar Library of Northern Ireland, HM Courts & Tribunal Service, the Circuits and the Inns of Court.
It is open to young people from state schools aged 15-18 and aims to give pupils insights into the justice system and an opportunity to develop skills such as logical reasoning, clear communication and teamwork. Two hundred schools entered this year.
The QE participants were: Nathan Chu, Shivam Masrani, Laurie Mathias, Mipham Samten, Anake Singh, and Benjamin Suen, all from Year 12, along with Alex Beard, Rivu Chowdhury, Hector Cooper, Kieran Dhrona, Haider Jabir, Viraj Mehta, Saifullah Shah and Sajan Suganth from Year 11.