A SPECIAL SESSION of the NH Supreme Court will be conducted on Law Day, May 1, at the Dana Center at St. Anselm College in Manchester, with several hundred area high school students invited to attend.

Two cases will be heard, with the court following standard argument procedure. Superior Court Chief Justice Walter L. Murphy will open the session by making brief introductory remarks. Following the oral arguments, the justices will adjourn to confer on the cases, emerging later for a short question-and-answer session with students on topics not related to any specific cases. While the judges are conferring, the attorneys involved will answer questions from the audience.

To enhance the educational value of the session, the court and the Bar Association are collaborating on a project to brief students in advance on the cases to be heard, the appellate process and the role of oral argument.

In addition to approximately 450 students expected from area public and private high schools, students from St. Anselm College will attend, and the session will be open to the public. The session also will be videotaped for future use. The program is being presented with the assistance of St. Anselm College.

"We see this as a very important public outreach program that will give students and the community a chance to get to know the justices and learn about the appellate process," said Chief Justice David Brock in a letter to area high school principals. He noted that the timing of the program coincides with Law Day. "May 1 is Law Day, which was designated by Congress as a time to recognize the principles of justice and equality that are the foundation of our democracy. With that theme in mind, we believe this project makes a substantial contribution to enhancing understanding of our court system."

According to court public information officer Laura Kiernan, the court is also planning a similar "road session" to be held in October at Strafford County Superior Court. The Supreme Court hopes to continue these sessions in the future, she said, at other locations around the state. The program is modeled on public outreach programs conducted by courts in a number of other states, and was under consideration by the court for a number of years.

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