The Courtroom Journalist Contest allows students to experience a courtroom setting from the perspective of a news reporter and learn about the American legal system from actual judges and attorneys. Through the voice of a newspaper reporter reporting on a criminal case, students observe and report on their schools mock trials. Students have 24 hours to submit an article depicting the courtroom trial.
Download: PDF of Rules| Scoring Guidelines |Sample Journalist Article|Reporters' Handbook
Contest Rules and Procedures
All journalists must:
- be affiliated with a registered LA County Mock Trial team and enrolled at the team’s school.
- pay a $35 entry fee and register on their team’s
- complete a waiver authorizing the publication or reprinting of their Journalists Contest submission for educational purposes. No financial compensation will be awarded.
During Round 2 (official round):
- Introduce yourself to the scorers, say your name, and identify yourself as the courtroom journalist.
- Your article must be based on what you observe during your team’s Round 2 trial.
- You cannot start writing until the court is called to order by the bailiff.
- Once the trial starts, you may not have any contact with anyone (parents, teachers, students, or spectators). You must draft your article completely independently.
After Round 2:
- You must type their articles. Typed submissions must be a 12-point Times New Roman font, with one-inch margins, double-spaced, and may not exceed 850 words, excluding the journalist’s name and team code.
- Submitted articles should be in a reporter's voice covering a criminal trial. Use of dictionaries and thesauruses will be permitted when typing their article.
- Label your article with your name and team code only.
- You will have 24 hours to complete their article and email to daisy@teachdemocracy.org by 6:00 pm on:
- November 11th for high school entries
- November 13th for middle school entries
- You may refer to the Los Angeles Mock Trial case materials, the Journalism Reporters Handbook, and the Judging criteria.