Comparing Judicial Institutions: Using an Inquisitorial Trial Simulation to Facilitate Student Understanding of International Legal Traditions

Abstract

This article proposes a new role-playing exercise for public law courses: a mocktrial simulation using the European inquisitorial system of trial procedure. By exposing students to an alternative method of conducting a trial, numerous pedagogical benefits can be obtained, including stimulating critical thinking regarding the potential inefficiencies in the American trial system. The article provides an overview of the inquisitorial trial system, and also sets out the procedures for conducting the simulation and conducting assessment.

Enhancing Student Learning By Using Mock Trials in Criminal Justice Courses

“…Examples include courses in political science (Weiden, 2009), business law (McDevitt, 2009), international law (Ambrosio, 2006), family law (Miller, Linville, Todahl, & Metcalfe, 2009), management (Farmer et al, 2013), paralegal education (Houser, 1993), and counselor training (Colby & Long, 1994). Interestingly, and rather inexplicably, the use of mock trials in criminal justice courses is rare-or at least is not comprehensively documented in the literature.…”

“…Weiden (2009) provides what appears to be the only description of a mock trial exercise specifically designed to teach about the inquisitorial system. He believes the benefits of this active learning technique include the possibility of diminishing student ethnocentrism, increasing their global and comparative awareness, and provoking consideration of system change.…”

“…After providing a very useful description of the inquisitorial process, Weiden (2009) describes the procedures that should be followed when having students participate in a mock trial following the inquisitorial model. That description identifies the minimum roles to be played (six witnesses, one defendant, one judge, and two lawyers), but notes that, when more students are available, the roles can be increased.…”

The Settlement Game: A Simulation Teaching Institutional Theories of Public Law

“… 1 As Weiden (2009) notes, many countries in Latin America and Africa also use bureaucratic legalism. …”

“…Meanwhile, the institutional side of public law remains largely without simulations. Theories such as adversarial legalism (i.e., the institutional design of American trial courts) or “bargaining in the shadow of the law” (i.e., that litigants negotiate with the threat of going to court) are important tenets of the subfield, and yet, they are unaccounted for in the simulations literature (but see Weiden 2009). Jurisprudence is important, and for that reason, mock trials continue to have a place in the simulations literature and the classroom.…”