ON MAY 1, 2002, the NH Supreme Court held a historic session outside the confines of its official courthouse, before an audience that included more than 450 high school and college students. The court took its act on stage, so to speak, with four justices hearing two oral arguments on actual cases at the Dana Center auditorium at St. Anselm College.

What made the event even more extraordinary was that the audience had the opportunity to ask questions of not only the lawyers participating in the arguments, but also of the judges, who, of course, were limited to inquiries of a general nature.

The session - the first of what the court expects will be an ongoing program with one to two such "on the road" events each year - was well-covered by the news media, with WMUR TV, NH Public Television, NH Public Radio, the Union Leader, the Concord Monitor, and the Associated Press all filing stories. And a reporter from the Christian Science Monitor later followed up to research a potential article.
In addition to organizing the event (St. Anselm College's Institute of Politics handled the logistics of the venue), the court enlisted the assistance of the Bar Association in rounding up lawyers with appellate experience, not associated with the case, to visit the 10 schools (and a home-schooling group) who sent students to the event. (See thank-you letter to the Bar from Chief Justice Brock on page 4.)

Superior Court Chief Justice Walter Murphy, who made introductory remarks, said he hoped the program would help "make a start toward addressing a shocking lack of understanding about the operations" of the court system.

In an article appearing on the front page of the Concord Monitor, reporter Lisa Wangsness wrote: "...for New Hampshire's justices, yesterday's event was about far more than furthering education or promoting the rule of law in America. It represented an extraordinary break with the court's remote tradition, a conscious effort on the court's part to connect with a public it ignored for years in an effort to remain above the political fray."

Coming out into the public clearly was an experience the judges enjoyed, as they fielded questions both serious and light-hearted from the students. They discussed how they endeavor to be neutral on what often are difficult issues; Justice Dalianis' experience as a female trail-blazer in the state's judiciary; their workload (the number of cases screened and heard requires reading what amounts to two briefs every day - "and counts nothing else we do," one justice said); and the role that oral argument plays in the appellate process. That issue led one student to ask, "Are you guys allowed to interrupt whenever you want to?" Justice Duggan, who was on the other side of that exchange for more than 20 years as an appellate defender, said appellate attorneys welcome the opportunity to engage the justices in dialogue and to address the issues the judges are raising.

The audience also had plenty of questions for the lawyers who presented their cases, who were:

• Edward T. Clancy, representing the appellant, a high school student charged with disorderly conduct in a case that raised statutory interpretation issues and free speech rights. Assistant Attorney General Susan P. McGinnis defended the conviction handed down by the Dover District Court.
• Francis X. Quinn, of Manchester, representing the estate of a former mental patient whose family contended that the psychiatrist who discharged the man 12 days earlier was liable for his subsequent suicide. Robert M. Walsh, representing the psychiatrist and who was arguing his first case before the Supreme Court, defended the jury verdict absolving the doctor of liability.

The lawyers appeared to relish the opportunity to explore the issues of their cases with the audience. Students asked about how particular precedents played a role in the cases the lawyers were presented, and tackled weightier issues, such as the responsibility individuals have for their own lives.

"It's completely different to be told how it works and to be shown how it works," said Nick Johnson, a Concord High School senior interviewed by the Monitor. And in a quote emblazoned at the top of the Monitor's front page, Johnson added, "I thought that they were going to be stuffy, white-collared people. But they seemed like an average guy you'd see at McDonald's, eating a burger."

Justice John T. Broderick, Jr., the key proponent on the court for this public outreach project, was unable to attend due to his recuperation from facial injuries.

The court is planning another "on the road" session for October, in Strafford County.

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