A child lawyer is exactly what people need ... not! With the novel study for John Grisham's Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer, pupils use their imaginations to create their own examples of sarcasm. They also research a chosen famous lawyer and...

What's the difference between civil and criminal law? How do the court proceedings differ in these two types of trials? How do the standards of proof differ? Why do these differences exist? As part of their examination of the...

Young lawyers put Goldilocks on trial as they develop an understanding of the legal system in the final lesson plan of this five-part series. After learning about key terms relating to litigation, students are assigned roles...

High schoolers examine a variety of ethical issues that arise in criminal cases. They get into groups, and perform a case study of a real situation in which many of these ethical issues came up. All of the worksheets needed to...

How can one court acquit someone of a crime, while another convicts the person of the same one? It's all because of the differences between civil and criminal trials. An informative resource provides scholars in the field of criminology...

Middle schoolers to use all levels of Bloom's taxonomy to look at the case of 'Jack and the Beanstalk' through the eyes of our present legal system. They analyze the story to determine if Jack was a criminal or a victim.

Students examine and compare/contrast the steps of criminal and civil cases. They define key vocabulary terms, develop an outline of a criminal and civil trial, and analyze the differences in standards of proof in legal cases.

A courtroom can be a scary place for the uninitiated. Get familiar with the process using a helpful overview of the activities that take place prior to both civil and criminal cases.  The lesson explains the differences between...

Unless you are a lawyer, you might not understand just how unrealistic Law and Order and other legal dramas actually are. Here's a great resource to help scholars of criminology gain a more realistic perspective. The lesson outlines the...

Objection! Scholars research the rules and regulations of trial law. Using a trial game simulation, class attorneys choose whether to object to questioning during various trial scenarios. Once objecting, they must also choose the...

Should the United States ban the death penalty? Scholars use real-life examples of criminal activity to come to their own conclusions on the death penalty. Primary source documents, as well as video clips, open the issue of capital...

Was justice served for Bobby Franks? An informative article about the 1924 trial of Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold includes an overview of the murder of Bobby Franks, the defense’s legal strategy, and excerpts of closing arguments from...

Students participate in a simulation of the voir dire portion of a trial. There are student lawyers assigned for the prosecution and the defense. They must review and question all prospective jurors to obtain a fair and impartial jury.

An incident with a Swiss Army knife leads to a suit against the police department for battery, false arrest, and intentional infliction of emotional distress in the Brooks v. Lawrence & the Metro City Police Department mock...

The war on drugs doesn't have definite results. An interesting lesson examines the social, political, and economic effect of the war on drugs. Academics learn how the war on drugs has led to mass incarcerations and negatively affected...

Students explore what happens when someone is tried for a crime. They expand their knowledge of the name "Criminal Justice System" and develop discussion skills. Students read the story Leeds footballer guilty of fighting in public. ...

Students consider the role of justice in the formation of the United States and in the operation of today's criminal justice system. They investigate symbols associated with justice and references to justice in the Constitution.

Students explore the different degrees and types of rape as defined in the state of Washington. They role-play as prosecutors, defense attorneys, and judges, with one of each in different groups. The attorneys present their cases and the...

Your class members will take on the roles of jury members in this exciting simulation. After reading a detailed script and reviewing pieces of evidence, they will determine whether Honda violated copyright and copied James Bond.

Students write an article to inform readers about confidentiality with reporters, attempting to find local lawyers and journalists to explain the issues as they relate to them. Students research past cases and the status of the current...

Courtrooms are complicated. In addition to the many rules, there are a number of people whose jobs are not very clear to the casual courtroom observer. With the resource, individuals identify some of these roles and review more...

Whether out of choice or necessity, people want to know what will happen on a typical day in court. A helpful lesson walks scholars in the field of criminology through the trial process from opening statements to the final verdict. 

Why doesn't the Supreme Court hear testimony from witnesses? How do they complete an entire proceeding in less than two hours? A helpful lesson guides scholars of criminology through these and other questions by explaining how appeals...

Students identify the process for settling a criminal dispute (how are the facts of the case presented; how is the dispute resolved?, and