2017 Empire Alum Meets the Bright Lights of Times Square

In 2017, I was lucky enough to compete with my school at the Empire World Championship in New York. We qualified for Empire after placing in the top 3 in Ireland’s National Mock Trial Competition. I was part of a team of 18 people in my year in school.

“We were headed for the Big Apple!”

We come from a disadvantaged area and a disadvantaged public school in the small town of Carndonagh, Ireland, but our competitors were from all over the local area. This meant that we ended up looking at a bill of over 30,000 euro (~$37,000) to get all of our team to New York, which thanks to the local people and a LOT of fundraising we managed to collect. We were headed for the Big Apple!

Keep in mind that some of our team had never even been out of the country and only two had ever been to New York before. We spent months preparing the incredibly complex case for each side, analysing the deep narrative and the details in the files we were provided. It was so realistic and we felt like we were real lawyers taking on a real case. I warn you though, the Empire programme takes a lot of work and shouldn’t be taken lightly. However the, rewards are so worth it.

We arrived in New York city two nights before the competition began and that feeling of pure spectacle seeing the skyscrapers appear from behind the hills and looking across the river at the skyline we had seen so many times in films and TV but to see it in reality was something else. We couldn’t have looked more out of place walking to the hotel while we gawked at the buildings that were taller than anything we had ever seen before.

“Empire gave us the opportunity to explore the City that the majority of us
would have never seen in our lives if it wasn’t for Empire.”

We spent the next day mostly sightseeing while trying to suppress that feeling of panic that we needed to be preparing for the case! The Empire programme really gave us the opportunity to explore the City that the majority of us would have never seen in our lives if it wasn’t for Empire.

The next event was the river cruise which our team sort of dominated! We had the DJ playing traditional Irish songs, we sang John Denver, and we taught some Americans how to jive (a type of dance for people who don’t know). It was possibly one of the most fun experiences offered by the programme and I met people on that boat that I still talk to today. We got to know other people that we ended up competing against while surrounded by all the famous landmarks of New York, like the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building. I still have some great pictures I took that night.

“Standing up when it was my turn to speak during the first trial was among the more nerve-racking moments of my life but once I got momentum, it was one of the greatest experiences of my life.”

Next day we had our debut as Lawyers. After receiving my seventh edit of my closing speech just that morning, I was stressed to say the least. Our team was buzzing though. There was an energy in the hotel that morning, you could just feel it. On the bus on the way there, we sang songs at the back of the bus and the other teams probably would have joined in, had they been able to understand our accents! I will warn though, don’t go overboard with the singing as I needed to take a lot of throat lozenges just so I didn’t sound like I smoked a pack a day!

In the courtroom, we battled some incredibly talented people and to this day I talk to many of them. (More on that later). Standing up when it was my turn to speak during the first trial was among the more nerve-racking moments of my life but once I got momentum, it was one of the greatest experiences of my life. It felt amazing going back and forth with arguments and I remember one particular moment where me and a Lawyer from another team had a bit of a back and forth. At the end of my cross examination, I made a final point and then finished. She stood up and pretty much made my point seem like nothing of any use and then I stood up again and tried to save my point, and so on and so forth for about 5 minutes. I think the judge may have got a bit annoyed by the end!

“Empire is a way to create connections with people from all around the world.”

But this also brings into light another great aspect of the Empire Programme. After that particular trial, I spent the lunch getting to know not only that girl, but all of her team and we now talk to each other on a daily basis. I am headed to America later this year and am taking a trip to see some of them! This is one of so many examples of how Empire can give you so many opportunities as I am only going to America because of this programme. Empire is a way to create connections with people from all around the world. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.

At the closing ceremony the atmosphere was class. I had the Irish flag over my shoulders which had signatures from all over the world. The cheers each team let out as their school’s name was called were electric and the feeling was contagious. I ended up winning an outstanding lawyer award and the feeling of pride while I collected it was great.

“I just would say that if you should ever get the opportunity to take part in Empire
grab it with both hands and make the most of it no matter where you are from.”

It was sad leaving the competition but I will always cherish the time I had competing at Empire. However, the Mock Trial opportunities didn’t end there, at least not for me. I have since been accepted to take part in Top Mock, a summer Mock Trial programme at Furman University in South Carolina, as well as a one-on-one mock trial tournament in California! I am hoping to come back to Empire next year as a blue shirt (Justin promised!). I also hope to go on to study law and practice law in the future. Empire has given me so much more than I expected.

I think our team proved that if you have determination and passion for something you can make it happen. Empire Mock Trial was our school’s opportunity to prove that we could make it to the world stage and do our country proud. It gave all of our team so many opportunities to do things we never thought we would. We met people from all over the world.

I just would say that if you should ever get the opportunity to take part in Empire grab it with both hands and make the most of it no matter where you are from. It offers so much more than you could expect.

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Daniel Mccormick is currently a student at Cardonagh Community College in Cardonagh, County Donegal, Ireland.  He will be representing Empire tomorrow at the National Irish Mock Trial Competition along with fellow alumni Lauren Gaffney and Neeve Rothwell from Loreto Balbriggan, both of whom competed at Empire New York in 2014.  

Applications for the 2018 season are open!  Teams can apply online at empiremocktrial.org/apply