The Ohio Center for Law-Related Education (OCLRE) hosts its third annual high school Moot Court Competition tomorrow at the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center. Students will take on the role of appellate attorneys and argue both sides of an original case.

More than 100 students from nine schools across the state will participate: Danville High School (Holmes County); Gilmour Academy (Lake County); Indian Hill High School (Hamilton County); Marysville High School (Union County); Mason High School (Warren County): Perkins Local High School (Erie County); Pleasant High School (Marion County); Springfield High School (Clark County); and St. Frances DeSales High School (Franklin County).

The 2016 Moot Court case follows Sarah Stewart, a fictitious ninth grader who just started high school and hopes to make a name for herself by recreating a prank her older sister played on a rival high school. Inadvertently, Sarah causes more damage than intended, and she is questioned at her school about the prank. She’s later arrested and is determined to be a delinquent. In recognition of the 50th anniversary of the Miranda v. Arizona decision, students will explore Sarah’s right to the presence of an attorney during an interrogation.

Teams will compete in both a legal brief-writing phase and an oral argument phase to test their skills as appellate advocates. After preliminary rounds in the morning, the students will compete to become the state champion in a final round, which will be streamed live on the Ohio Channel starting at 4:15 p.m.

Michael J. Hendershot, chief deputy solicitor for the Office of the Ohio Attorney General, will preside over the final round of competition. Fellow panelists include Pamela Vest-Boratyn, general counsel for the Office of the Ohio Attorney General; Samuel Peterson, deputy solicitor for the Office of the Ohio Attorney General; Tiffany Carwile, assistant attorney general in the Constitutional Offices Section; and Michael P. Walton, assistant prosecuting attorney at the Franklin County Prosecutor’s Office.

OCLRE is a non-profit, nonpartisan organization whose goal is to improve society by developing citizens empowered with an understanding of the nation’s democratic system. OCLRE is sponsored by the Supreme Court of Ohio, Ohio Attorney General’s Office, Ohio State Bar Association and the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio Foundation. The Moot Court program is funded by a grant from the Ohio State Bar Foundation. For more information about the OCLRE and the Moot Court program, visit www.oclre.org.