Dear friends in the legal profession,

I am very pleased to send you this update on Justice by the People, the educational outreach program of the Foundation of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA).  I encourage you to share this information with your members, teachers in your state and other people who share our interest in educating young Americans about the right to trial by jury, the importance of jury service, and other constitutional rights and responsibilities.

I assumed the role of president of the ABOTA Foundation in January and, with trustees and staff members, I have been actively seeking strategic partnerships which will extend the reach and impact of Justice by the People to more teachers and their students.  I am pleased to report our recent successes.

Funding for Justice by the People

The ABOTA Foundation is very happy to welcome the Arizona Foundation for Legal Services and Education and the Alabama Civil Justice Foundation as new supporters of  Justice by the People in 2010.  Both join the Fellows of the ABOTA Foundation and the Michigan State Bar Foundation as supporters of the program this year.  If your organization is interested in learning more about Justice by the People or supporting this valuable teacher resource, please contact me.  We would love to add you to our growing list of supporters.

New Model for Partnerships

Through the strong and pro-active interest of Sue McInnish, Executive Director of the Alabama Civil Justice Foundation, the Alabama State Department of Education has approved use of Justice by the People in Alabama classrooms.  We will promote Justice by the People by e-mail to 4,200 Alabama middle school teachers of civics, social studies and language arts and are working with Sue to determine how to actively engage members of ACJF and the Alabama Chapter of ABOTA in disseminating the program.

National High School Mock Trial Championship

The ABOTA Foundation is a proud sponsor of the 2010 National High School Mock Trial Championship (NHSMTC) where more than 300 students and their coaches from 40 states and U.S. territories will gather in Philadelphia on May 6-8.  This tournament is the premier, law-related academic competition for high school students in the country.  Many of you may be involved in sponsoring preliminary mock trial competitions in your own states.  We are pleased that the sponsorship includes a live link on the NHSMTC web site to Make Your Case, the interactive courtroom trial game that is part of the Justice by the People curriculum and an excellent training tool for mock trial coaches and teams.  You might want to use Make Your Case in your state competitions also.

I welcome your comments on how we can communicate most effectively with you about the ABOTA Foundation's Justice by the People program. 

With best regards,

PS:  Bring Justice by the People to your teacher workshops

Do you conduct summer workshops for teachers?  Members of ABOTA are available and willing to introduce teachers in your state to the Justice by the People program.  Using a PowerPoint presentation, an ABOTA member will deliver a live presentation about the Make Your Casecourtroom simulation game and other lessons available for free at www.scholastic.com/americanjustice. 

Please contact Brian Tyson, executive director of ABOTA at briant@abota.org, for a presentation request form.