"I heard I might get to be a judge someday!" That's right. Beginning in 2023, ordinary people sitting on the bench will no longer be something students encounter only in textbooks. Since the Legislative Yuan enacted the Citizen Judges Act in 2020, courts, lawyers, educators, and civil society have all been preparing for the new system to take effect.

For today's high-school and vocational students, that future is not very far away: in another five to seven years, some may be selected to serve as citizen judges. Many people's image of a courtroom comes from American television, where attorneys deliver dramatic arguments to a jury. Taiwan's new model is different: professional judges and citizen judges will deliberate together in a mixed court, rather than using the Anglo-American jury model. The important point they share is that ordinary citizens will now exercise adjudicative power.

To give high-school and vocational students a deeper understanding of the citizen-judge system-and to help future citizen judges develop basic rule-of-law literacy-JRF will hold the 2021 "Sorry, But I Really Need That Cool Thing" Citizen-Judge Summer Camp. Through accessible theater-based activities, lectures, films, mock trials, and interactive exercises, students can begin imagining what it actually means to sit as a citizen judge.

Program Format

• Mock Trial: A script adapted from a real case lets participants experience courtroom procedure directly by taking different roles in the trial.
• Thematic Lectures: Practitioners with courtroom advocacy experience and experts familiar with public-participation systems in different countries introduce key issues.
• Theater-in-Education: Participants work through changing scenarios and experience the dynamics both inside and outside a courtroom.
• Film Screening: A film related to public participation in trials, followed by a post-screening discussion.
• Hands-On Project: Groups present the results of their discussions and receive feedback and scores from evaluators.

Camp Schedule

Time	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3
10:00- 10:30	Check-In and Group Assignment	Get Ready! Before the Mock Trial You have received the case file. Trial is about to begin, and you already have information from the defendant's statement and the evidence. Your next task is to piece together the clues and prepare for what happens in court.	Today, I'd Like Some "Citizen Judge" A mock trial is more than a script; it connects with life outside the courtroom. Different scenarios will force you to confront questions in the real world: How do we imagine the facts? How do we understand law? What should we expect from citizen judges? And how should students' rights be protected? This session is designed to make those questions concrete.
10:30- 11:30	Icebreaker
11:30- 12:00	Program Orientation
12:00- 1:30 p.m.	Lunch and Film Discussion *12 Angry Men* A classic courtroom drama built around deliberation, evidence, and doubt. You'll see why it remains one of the most famous films about a jury.	Hey, What's for Lunch?	The Last Lunch
1:30- 3:00 p.m.		Take Up the People's Gavel Using a script adapted from a real case, participants work in groups as prosecutors, defense counsel, and citizen judges and experience the trial process firsthand.	Prepare the Final Presentation After three days at camp, develop your own perspective on citizen judges and Taiwan's criminal-trial system.
3:00- 4:00 p.m.	Hear What the Experts Have to Say What-ordinary people as judges? What different forms of public participation in criminal trials exist around the world?	Deliberation Attorneys with courtroom experience guide participants through post-trial deliberation and discussion from the perspectives of citizen judges, prosecutors, and defense counsel.	Final Presentations Groups present their analysis of the case from the perspectives of the prosecutor, defense counsel, and citizen judges, followed by evaluation and feedback from the panel.
4:00- 5:00 p.m.		Discussion and Q&A	Certificates and Closing

Eligibility and Capacity

• Students enrolled in high schools and vocational high schools anywhere in Taiwan
• Admission is by application; the organizer reserves the right to select participants.
• Each of the Taichung and Kaohsiung sessions will admit 40 participants, with 10 waitlisted applicants. Each student may register for only one session.

Registration

• Application deadline: June 5, 2021
• Admission results announced: June 10, 2021

Fee

• Completely free
• After admission is announced, participants must pay a NT$2,500 deposit. The deposit will be refunded after the camp to students who attend the full program and submit a reflection.
• If the deposit is not paid by the deadline, the place will not be held and will be offered to waitlisted applicants in order.

Organizer

Judicial Reform Foundation

Co-organizers

Taiwan Youth Association for Democracy
Base Culture
Black Dog Theatre
Civics Department, Kaohsiung Municipal Kaohsiung Senior High School