By Hope Alvarez
“All rise!”
Silence filled the room as the judge took her seat. The lawyers shuffled through their notes one last time while the jury prepared to listen about the criminal actions of a man who fled the state of Florida.
Olga Oganesyan, assistant director of academic programs at the English Language Institute, smiled as she watched her students navigate the courtroom with confidence and poise.
The mock trial was about to begin.
Now in its ninth year, the English for Lawyers cohort concluded their summer program with a mock trial on Aug. 10 after six weeks of courses. Hosted by the English Language Institute at Syracuse University, English for Lawyers is a program designed to provide a foundation in legal terminology and language usage in various areas for non-native speakers of English who intend to earn an LL.M. degree in the United States.