Mock Trial. This document contains the case and an outline of the mock trial requirements. Case: Johnson vs. Coldrock Tire and Rubber Company

Transcription

1 Mock Trial This document contains the case and an outline of the mock trial requirements. Case: Johnson vs. Coldrock Tire and Rubber Company In March 2012, John Johnny Johnson, a mechanic employed by Infiniti of Parkland, attempted to mount a 16-inch tire on a 17-inch rim of an Infiniti G35 wheel. While installing the tire, he leaned and reached over the assembly and the tire exploded, causing him serious, permanent injuries. Mr. Johnson lost three fingers of his right hand in the accident, as well as the vision in his right eye. In addition to his job at the dealership, Mr. Johnson was an aspiring reggae musician who the day of the accident had received a multi-million dollar record contract offer from Tinseltown Records. Mr. Johnson filed suit in Florida's 17th Judicial Circuit Court against his employer, American Hawk Company the manufacturer of the wheel, Nissan Motor Company the manufacturer of the automobile and designer of the wheel and Coldrock Tire and Rubber Company the manufacturer of the tire. Mr. Johnson had 10 years of experience as a mechanic and had received three days of on-site training from representatives of Coldrock. The dealership, wheel manufacturer and automobile manufacturer all settled, leaving Coldrock as the remaining defendant. An issue in the case is the labeling on the tire. The tire had a label, advising users never to mount a 16-inch tire on a 17-inch rim, warning of the danger of severe injury or death, and included a drawing of a mechanic leaning over the tire to install it with a circle and red line drawn through it. Whether the label was sufficiently conspicuous or adequately depicted the resulting danger or risk of injury, remains an open issue. In depositions, Johnson admitted that he ignored these warnings at the urging of his employer, especially because it was common practice to install smaller tires on larger rims of the Infiniti G35. During discovery, Johnson's attorneys explored why Coldrock did not use a safer "bead" design. The bead is a rubber encased steel wire, which circles the tire and holds it on to the rim. Each side has offered up experts, with Johnson's pointing out that other manufacturers use different and safer bead designs and Coldrock's arguing that the Coldrock design was the safest in the industry, and a different design would not have changed the outcome. The defendant in the case was Roger Cole Coldrock, CEO of the company, who is being represented by the Wall Street firm of Ben, Jarvis, Green & Ellis, LLP. The plaintiff is being represented by the law firm of Dewey, Cheatum & Howe, LLP, a specialist in product liability suits. The assigned judge in the case is the Hon. Solomon Cardozo Holmes, a recent appointee by the Republican governor. Before his appointment, Judge Holmes was in private practice with a large Fort Lauderdale firm; his major client was General Motors.

2 I. General Information o Read the full case listed above o Be aware of ALL deadlines o Sign up for an individual role in the Wiki Mock Trial document located on Blackboard Roles are available on a first come, first serve basis It is your responsibility to play your role according to the case information given All parties are permitted to conduct any outside researched they deem beneficial to their position in the case, except for the jurors o There are two possible mock trial dates, please check your calendar for work or class conflicts prior to signing up for a specific date. Your attendance is required Please only interact with the members participating in your specific mock trial Do not get confused with classmates who are participating in the other trial for their testimony has no bearing and is not admissible in your case o The mock trial will be conducted on Adobe Connect Pro in Professor Gelman s court room II. Roles o Plaintiff: 1 available role per mock trial John Johnny Johnson will be called as a witness by plaintiff's counsel and will be cross-examined by defendant's counsel. o Plaintiff s Counsel: 4 available roles per mock trial (divide the workload) Prepare for and represent your client at trial Determine the legal theories you are relying on to develop the basis for your lawsuit. Gather evidence and develop list of witnesses/experts Depose the witnesses, which means ask those questions under oath prior to the trial; submit written transcript to Conduct voire dire (juror examination) to eliminate three jurors (each side has one discretionary strike and the final strike must be mutually agreed); submit written transcript to Partake in pre-trial conference (Refer to item III) Give opening statements, which outline the elements and evidence in your case that support your position Present evidence and question witnesses/experts Possibly cross-examine defendant s witnesses/experts Conclude with closing statement o Defendant: 1 available role per mock trial

3 CEO of Coldrock, Roger "Cole" Coldrock, 87, a legend in the industry, whose family started the business after World War II. o Defendant Counsel: 4 available roles per mock trail Prepare for and represent your client at trial Determine the legal theories the plaintiff is relying on and develop a strategy to refute them Gather evidence and develop list of witnesses/experts Conduct voire dire (juror examination) to eliminate three jurors (each side has one discretionary strike and the final strike must be mutually agreed); submit written transcript to Partake in pre-trial conference (Refer to item III) Give opening statements, which outline the elements and evidence in your case that support your position (why plaintiff can t prove his/her case) Present evidence and question witnesses/experts Possibly cross-examine plaintiff s witnesses/experts Conclude with closing statement o Judge: 3 available role per mock trial Essentially the umpire of the courtroom. Establish the ground rules of the case (like the time allotted per party), what evidence is admissible (relevant vs. hear-say?), rule on motions and objections made, settle any points of law argued, and deliver instructions to jury Research how to conduct a trial and lead the pre-trial conference (refer to item III) Take charge, conduct a smooth and speedy trial without undue delay and keep the attorneys in line and on track Hear objections and over rule or sustain them Give proper instructions to jury o Witnesses: 4 available roles per mock trial Need to be consistent with their testimonies Deposed by plaintiff s and defendant s attorneys (attorneys will coordinate this task, your job is to thoroughly respond in a comprehensive and timely manner) May be called to the stand (counsel s decision) Available roles: Mickey Wrenchwell - A mechanic and one of the plaintiff's coworkers. Sandra Somerville - A customer who witnessed the accident.

4 III. IV. Dr. Stanley Goodspeed - A retired Ford Motor Company mechanical engineer and an expert in automobile stability control systems who the plaintiff has hired as an expert witness to testify as to the inherent hazard in installing a smaller tire on a larger rim. Dr. Christina Hernandez - A former mechanical engineer and former employee of Firestone who the defense has hired as its expert witnesses. o Jury: 6 available roles per mock trial Pre-trail: Questioned by the plaintiff s and defendant s attorneys (attorneys will coordinate this task, your job is to thoroughly respond in a comprehensive and timely manner) You may create your own profile ( For example you can be a 60 year old widow with 6 kids or an unemployed farmer) Note: three will be eliminated by the attorneys Listen to the facts of the trial and deliberate in the conference room of the courtroom. They will reach a decision and report back to the courtroom Pre-Trial Conference (Only for the attorneys and judges) The judges will coordinate and run the pre-trial conference and submit the report The purpose of the conference is to establish the ground rules for the trial, define and refine the issues, preview the evidence, review the timeframe and procedure of the trial, and discuss opportunities for a settlement All of the attorneys for the plaintiff and defense must attend and participate The pretrial conference report should contain the names of the judges, plaintiff s attorneys, defense attorneys and fairly delegate who is going to assume responsibility of each item noted below: o Type of lawsuit, cause of action, and damages sought o Selecting a lead attorney for each side o Writing juror questions o Drafting witness examination questions o Preparing witnesses for trial on Direct and cross exam o Opening and closing arguments, o Preparing strategies and researching precedents o Submitting all documents to relevant parties by the deadline Schedule of the Trial (Total Time= 2 hours) Plaintiff's Counsel Opening Statement: 10 minutes Defendant's Counsel Opening Statement: 10 minutes Plaintiff's Case: 20 minutes + 10 minutes for cross-examination Defendant's Case: 20 minutes + 10 minutes for cross-examination Plaintiff's Counsel Closing Argument: 10 minutes Defendant's Counsel Closing Argument: 10 minutes Jury Instructions: 5 minutes

5 Jury Deliberation and Verdict: 15 minutes