By Deborah Alley Smith, Christian & Small Managing Partner and Vice President of the Birmingham Bar Foundation
By the time they reach high school, the only exposure many teenagers have had to Alabama’s judicial system is negative. They see terrible things in the news about law enforcement, lawyers and our courts, but they need to understand that our judicial system protects the rights and liberties we enjoy in this country.
That is why the 2015 Alabama Appellate Courts Oral Arguments, hosted by Cumberland School of Law at Samford University and presented by the Birmingham Bar Foundation, is so important. This free-to-the-public event was held on Wednesday, November 4, and 500-600 high school and middle school students from around the state were in attendance, as well as numerous college and law school students.
The students observed the Alabama Supreme Court hear argument in an appeal of a $15 million verdict against a Bessemer convenience store for selling alcohol to an underage driver – an action that led to an accident that killed a 13-year-old boy and injured three others. The Court of Criminal Appeals heard argument in an appeal from an Alabama Death Row inmate who was convicted in the 1998 murder of a Talladega man and rape of his wife.
In the week before the oral arguments, volunteer lawyers and judges visited students in their classrooms and shared information about the judicial process in general and the two specific cases. This is my favorite part of the initiative, because the kids typically are amazingly engaged. I’ve been impressed by their interest and focus – not only in the cases, but also in the judicial system and what it’s like to be an attorney.
Many lawyers have never seen the Alabama appellate courts in session. This is partially because the appellate courts don’t hold many oral arguments in this day and age. So this is a very unique opportunity for students, and it was great to see how interested they were throughout the course of the day.
Through the Oral Arguments program, we are able to give students an up-close-and-personal, inside look at a system they would not otherwise have the chance to see or engage with in a positive way. Our hope is that the students will come away from this annual event with a new appreciation of our judicial system. By presenting events like this, we are encouraging a whole new generation of responsible citizens – those who may one day be a valuable part of our judicial system.