Workshop | Bringing the Courtroom into the Classroom! JRF Partners with Taichung and Tainan Bar Associations to Host Mock Trial Workshops, Unveiling a Brand-New "Gender Issues" Script

The Judicial Reform Foundation (hereinafter referred to as the JRF) has long cultivated legal education in schools, striving to guide the younger generation in understanding the judicial system and human rights values through approaches closely aligned with students' life experiences. In October and December 2025, the JRF held the "Being a Judge in the Classroom" Campus Mock Trial Seed Lecturer Training Workshops in Taichung and Tainan, respectively. Partnering with the Taichung Bar Association and Tainan Bar Association, the JRF invited teachers and attorneys to participate together, demonstrating how mock trials can be practically implemented in classrooms and injecting further possibilities into campus legal education.

Since 2015, the JRF has promoted the "Campus Mock Trial" project. Through role-playing and hands-on practice, students are guided to take on roles such as prosecutors, defense counsel, witnesses, and citizen judges, practically participating in procedures including cross-examination, deliberation, and rendering judgments. Over the years, the JRF has organized hundreds of legal education events across Taiwan, with more than two hundred campus legal education sessions completed this year alone. Through the classroom design of mock trials, students come to understand basic judicial principles such as the "presumption of innocence" and "procedural fairness," and practice listening to differing opinions and making rational judgments during discussions, translating legal concepts into understandable and actionable learning experiences.

These two workshops attracted nearly forty teachers and attorneys, with an approximately even split between educators and legal practitioners, creating a lively on-site atmosphere. In addition to introducing the JRF's existing legal education resources, the events arranged hands-on mock trial experiences and invited attorneys who had previously taught in schools as well as long-term collaborating teachers to share practical classroom experiences and frontline observations. Several participants actively inquired about future collaboration methods during the events, indicating a continued high demand on campuses for diverse, actionable formats of legal education.

In response to feedback from teachers and attorneys in the field, the JRF has simultaneously launched a brand-new mock trial script titled "A Case of Suspected Child and Youth Sexual Exploitation." Through a case closely connected to students' lives, it guides students to reflect on the relationship between gender, power, and judicial judgment, and to practice rational dialogue on controversial public issues. The new script is now officially available, and teachers will be able to apply to use it as a practical tool for classroom teaching and the promotion of legal education.

The JRF expresses its gratitude for the collaborative support of the Taichung Bar Association and the Tainan Bar Association, as well as the dedication of all participating teachers and attorneys. Moving forward, the JRF will continue to enter more campuses through mock trials, teaching material development, and interdisciplinary collaboration, accompanying students in understanding the judiciary and practicing critical thinking through genuine participation, ensuring that the rule of law exists not only in textbooks and courtrooms, but also as a public value that can be discussed and understood in daily life.

Press Contact

Legal Education Specialist Chen Li-ling chnllng@jrf.org.tw

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