Bishop Lynch High School, of Dallas, Texas, placed tenth in the 2019 National High School Mock Trial Competition. Out of 46 teams, including several from New Jersey, Alabama, Pennsylvania, and Nebraska—marking the second top-ten finish for a Texas team in the last five years.
On May 16-19, high schools teams competed in Athens, Georgia, arguing a hypothetical criminal case. In March, Bishop Lynch High School beat out 28 high school teams from across Texas, to earn their place in the national competition.
Team members include: Ryan Gerron, Leah Hawthorne, Kathleen McNeill, Billy Olsson, Jason Peraza, Grace Rochester, Mike Rutherford, Charlie Stock, Grace Stroud, Beth Storm as their Teacher Coach, and Magistrate Judge Rebecca Rutherford as the attorney advisor.
In addition, Evelyn Penrose, of Wylie High School, placed first out of eight competing artists to win the National Competition.
The National High School Mock Trial Championship is the ultimate law-related education experience for the best and brightest high school students in the United States and around the globe. The program is dedicated to promoting an understanding and appreciation of the American judicial system through an academic competition.
The Dallas Bar Association has sponsored and coordinated the statewide program since its inception in the 1970s to teach high school students how the justice system works and how the law is applied in everyday life, and to expose them to critical thinking exercises and quick analysis through preparation and presentation. In the 40-year history, the Texas High School Mock Trial Competition has had more than 250,000 participants and has awarded approximately $400,000 in scholarships at the local, regional and state levels.
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The Dallas Bar Association is a professional, voluntary organization of more than 11,000 Dallas-area attorneys.