Feb. 2—The Lake County Courthouse hosted the recent District Mock Trial Competition with multiple municipal court judges serving as panelists.

According to a news release from Common Pleas Court Judge Patrick J. Condon’s office, on Jan. 26, 14 teams from 11 different schools competed at the courthouse in the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education’s annual District Mock Trial Competition.

Chagrin Falls finished first and advanced to the regional competition.

Also arguing before panels of three judges were teams from Mentor, Painesville Riverside, Painesville Harvey, Lake Catholic, Andrews Osborne Academy, Notre Dame — Cathedral Latin, Chagrin Falls, Orange, Warren John F. Kennedy, Newton Falls and Niles McKinley.

The case this year dealt with obtaining restitution from a co-conspirator in an embezzlement case and whether forfeiting a classic Chevrolet Camaro was proportionate to the amount of loss.

Six panels consisted of an elected judge and two attorneys. The seventh panel consisted of two elected judges and a practicing attorney.

Each team consisted of lawyers and witnesses. Trials were conducted in the morning and afternoon and after both trials were completed, the following teams earned the right to advance to the Regional competition: Chagrin Falls Team 1; Warren John F. Kennedy Team 1; Niles McKinley Team 2; and Orange Team 2.

“I am amazed every year at the quality of the presentation from these high school students,” Condon said. “It is apparent that they devote a lot of time and effort to perfecting their roles. These are tomorrow’s leaders. This year I was able to view conduct, both inside and outside of the courtroom, that convinces me that the future is bright.”

The regional competition will be held on Feb. 16 at a location to be determined.