2019 Practical Civics for Legal Education: Campus Mock Jury Trial Sharing Session @ Taichung
Last edited: 2026-08-29
The Campus Mock Jury Trial focuses on the system of citizen participation in trials, adapting common civil and criminal cases into courtroom short plays. Students are divided into groups: one group acts as judges, prosecutors, lawyers, defendants, and witnesses, while the other acts as jurors. During the trial proceedings, judges, prosecutors, and defense counsel fulfill their statutory duties respectively, and witnesses undergo cross-examination. The jury deliberation process tests their ability to adhere to the presumption of innocence while learning the importance of putting the principle of conviction based on evidence into practice.
In addition to the basic legal knowledge embedded in the plot—allowing students to experience firsthand and learn about the legal issues involved in specific cases—the discussion led by the lecturers further explains the importance of complying with the fundamental principles of criminal trials and promotes the realization of procedural fairness and neutrality during trials. Furthermore, the jury deliberation process is one of communication, dialogue, and mutual persuasion, embodying the spirit of deliberative democracy.
JRF's Campus Mock Jury Trial project began in 2015, holding events in schools across Taiwan. To date, a total of 163 campus mock jury trials have been completed across 96 junior and senior high schools, reaching 4.5% of all junior high schools and 12.3% of all senior high schools in Taiwan. This means that 95.5% of junior high schools and 87.7% of senior high schools have yet to partner with us, leaving much room for growth. We hope to reach more school teachers by holding regional sharing sessions in northern, central, and southern Taiwan.
Time
Saturday, March 9, 2019, 14:00-16:30
Location
Taichung Office, Judicial Reform Foundation (No. 845, Sec. 2, Taiwan Blvd., Xitun Dist., Taichung City 407)
Speakers
Hsi-Chung Sun / Civics Teacher, National Hualien Senior High School
Cheng-Hsien Hsieh / Civics Teacher, Mingdao High School
Hung-Yun Chiu / Attorney-at-Law, Hsueh-Ku Nan-Jung Law Firm
Wei-Ting Huang / Director of Taichung Office, Judicial Reform Foundation
Schedule
| Schedule | Time | Content |
| Check-in | 14:00-14:10 | Participant teacher check-in |
| Opening Introduction | 14:10-14:20 | Screening video, brief introduction on the purpose of promoting legal education through mock jury trial activities |
| Results Presentation | 14:20-14:40 | 2018 Results Report |
| Live Experience: Mock Trial | 14:40-15:00 | Operation of the new script |
| Explanation Session | 15:00-15:20 | Explanation and sharing by JRF personnel regarding cooperation plans and models for operating campus mock jury trials |
| Break | 15:20-15:30 | Intermission |
| Experience Sharing | 15:30-16:15 | Sharing by civics teachers and lawyers |
| Q&A Session | 16:15-16:30 | On-site feedback, Q&A |
This article is an AI-generated translation of the original Chinese text. In the event of any discrepancy, the Chinese version shall prevail.