Spring 2024 Audition Information
Tryouts for spots on the Temple Trial Team are held in the spring and possibly again in early fall semester. All students who will be 2Ls or more as of August 23, 2024, may audition for these spots.
For the spring (April ‘24) audition, you will give an opening statement [either side] and a direct-examination (1Ls) or a cross-examination (2Ls) from a fact pattern entitled Commonwealth v. Alexis Carter. You will have approximately 5 minutes for your opening statement, although you need/should not attempt to complete the entire opening in 5 minutes. You may be interrupted and asked to address a particular part of the case and how it bears on the argument. You will have an additional 5 minutes to conduct the direct or cross-examination. You may also be asked to speak extemporaneously about a topic of our choosing. Finally, you may be interviewed about your background, schedule and commitment.
Tryout Materials
Tryouts are scheduled for Thursday, April 18, 2024 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. and Friday, April 19, 2024 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. If any of these time slots do not work with your schedule, please email Professor Lippy at elippy@temple.edu and we will accommodate a different time slot.
If needed, the second round of tryouts are scheduled for Monday, April 22, 2024 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
You can sign up for a 15 minute time slot at this link –
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c48aaad2baaf8ce9-2023#/
When all of the Spring auditions have been completed, students may request individual feedback. Announcements about who makes the teams will not be made until late May, 2024.
Tryouts will determine who is invited to Temple’s end-of-summer Boot Camp, a week-long program designed to prepare students to try cases and win competitions.
Information Session & Training
An in-person Information Session will take place on Friday, April 12, 2024 at 12:30 p.m. This session will also be accessible by Zoom. Registration for the Information Session is mandatory and you will receive a Zoom link prior to April 12th. For those unable to attend the session live, it will be recorded. Please register for the information session
Additionally, you can learn more about how to conduct an opening statement by watching the below pre-recorded lectures and materials:
Opening Statement Lecture and Demonstrations
Opening Statements Narrated PowerPoint
(You must download the presentation to hear the narration.)
Opening Statements Articles_NITA 2018
Optimizing and Using Exhibits Lecture
Direct Examination Basics Lecture
Cross Examination Basics Lecture
Zoom Final Trial of Mock Trial Competition from Fall 2020
Video Samples of Openings and Closings