Public Notice Detail

ST. PAUL, MN  (October 19, 1999) – Today, in front of an audience of over 1,000 students from three St. Paul high schools, the Minnesota Supreme Court heard oral arguments of an actual case at Johnson High School in St. Paul.  Students from Johnson, Harding High School and Hill Murray High School in St. Paul watched the arguments in Johnson’s Warren E. Burger Auditorium and on the St. Paul Neighborhood Network, which broadcast the event citywide.

“It is so important for the court to reach out to the people we serve,” said Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Kathleen A. Blatz.  “Meeting with students and answering their questions help bridge the gap of understanding.   At the same time, we have the opportunity to learn from their perspectives and life experiences.  For all parties involved, it’s a valuable exchange.”

During the question and answer session that followed the oral arguments, the students asked about the appeals process, how the Justices were appointed to the state’s highest court and what members of the Court felt was the toughest part of their jobs.  Justices spent the remainder of the school day with students at all three schools, asking students about their reactions to the proceedings and their suggestions for improving the judiciary.

St. Paul Public Schools Superintendent Patricia Harvey said,  “The chance to witness the actual workings of the Supreme Court is a great educational opportunity for students.  Our kids need to see the link between their classroom work about the law and the work in the courtroom.  That’s what they saw here today.”

Teachers reviewed litigants’ briefs with students prior to the visit.  In addition, volunteer attorneys from the Ramsey County Bar Association’s “Youth and Law Committee” spent last week in classrooms at the schools, teaching students about the judicial system and the legal elements of the case they will be seeing.  Students at the three schools who could not be in the auditorium during the event watched the live broadcast on St. Paul Public Access Channel 32.  An e-mail and phone line allowed them to ask questions during the Q & A session that followed the oral arguments.     

State Senator Randy Kelly praised the Court’s visit and the schools’ participation in the event.  “In order to participate in government, you have to know how it works. Watching the proceedings improves students’ understanding, while having state officials as teachers for a day helps energize civic learning,” he said.    “It’s a compelling reminder for the students that government works for them,” Senator Kelly added.

The visit is part of an educational outreach effort begun by the Supreme Court in 1995 to increase students’ understanding of the judicial system and “demystify” the court process.  This is the Court’s tenth “traveling oral argument” visit to schools around the state.