Students learn best when they are engaged. To this end, Doane Stuart has an academic philosophy that encourages students to ask questions and be active participants. Learning results from doing, and our students greatly benefit from real-world experiences that supplement the classroom lessons.
Earlier this week, Jim Wheaton (Upper School history) led a group of students from his American Government class, as well as the Doane Stuart Mock Trial Team, on an excursion to the New York State Court of Appeals (the highest Court of the state). From Mr. Wheaton:
“My students have already studied the federal and state court systems, and this was a chance to see the court system in action. They had the opportunity to speak with Chief Judge DiFiore and Associate Judge Stein. We were able to ask questions of the judges (including how they came to be judges) and saw oral arguments for two cases before the court.”
A special thank you to Margery Eddy (parent of Jackson ‘18) who made this visit possible through her position as Chief Court Attorney.
From the NYS Court of Appeals website, The Court of Appeals, New York State’s highest court, is composed of a Chief Judge and six Associate Judges, each appointed to a 14-year term. New York’s highest appellate court was established to articulate statewide principles of law in the context of deciding particular lawsuits. The Court thus generally focuses on broad issues of law as distinguished from individual factual disputes. There is no jurisdictional limitation based upon the amount of money at stake in a case or the status or rank of the parties.