Day in Court

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The Day in Court program was founded in 1999 by attorney (now Judge) Stephen M. Murphy, who modeled the program after one he experienced in Portland, Oregon. He partnered with the Barristers Club, the new lawyers division of the Bar Association of San Francisco, to offer San Francisco schoolchildren tours of the local courthouse. These tours provide an opportunity for students in grades five through eight to visit the civil courthouse, observe hearings and jury trials, and interact with court staff and judges.

Comments from Students and Teachers

It must be real exciting to be a lawyer."
"I don't think I want to be a lawyer, I would rather be a judge."
"I especially liked courtroom number 514. There were no lawyers so it didn't seem like they were speaking a different language."
- 7th and 8th grade students

The Day in Court “was cool. I wish I could go there again.”
We “had a wonderful experience of a lifetime.”
- 8th grade students

Thank you for making this a great experience for us. We really appreciate it. We had so much fun. Keep up the good work!”
- 7th grade student

I wanted to tell you again that the students were on fire with their excitement. They talked about it animatedly the next day.”
 - 7th grade teacher


Day in Court Schedule

Note: Highlighted dates/times are still open 

Date

Time 

School

Teacher

Grade

No. of Students

9/26/24

10:15am - 12pm

Clarendon Elementary School

Max Raynard

5th

28

10/17/24

9:15am - 12pm

 

 

 

 

10/24/24

9:15am - 12pm

 

 

 

 

11/7/24

9:15am - 12pm

Ulloa Elementary School

Michael Lee

5th

22

11/14/24

9:15am - 12pm

Clarendon Elementary School

Amber Lewis-Francis

5th

30

11/21/24

9:15am - 12pm

Live Oak School 

Londynn Young and Kelley Plasterer (+ Naomi Hamburger, staff coordinator)

5th

19

12/5/24

9:15am - 12pm

Ulloa Elementary School

Karen Yu

5th

22

12/12/24

9:15am - 12pm

Live Oak School

Naomi Hamburger, Jordan Drosd

5th

18

1/23/25

9:15am - 12pm

St. Finn Barr Catholic School

Ms. Anna Center

8th

25

1/30/25

9:15am - 12pm

Aurora School 

Lynsey Kamine

7th

19

2/6/25

9:15am - 12pm

Clarendon Elementary School

Denise Ebisuzaki

5th

30

2/13/25

9:15am - 12pm

Holy Names School

Jane Kaprosch

5th

37

2/20/25

9:15am - 12pm

Saint Brendan

Amy Stecher

8th

30

2/27/25

9:15am - 12pm

Ulloa Elementary School

Kristy Fong

5th

22

3/6/25

9:15am - 12pm

St. Paul's School

Oscar Chung

8th

22

3/13/25

9:15am - 12pm

De Marillac Academy

Ms. Marie Fernandez

5th

21

3/20/25

9:15am - 12pm

St. Paul School

Eileen Woods

6th

22

3/27/25

9:15am - 12pm

Clarendon Elementary School

Allison de Wit

5th

30

Program Objectives

Courthouse tours for schoolchildren serve several objectives:

  1. Enable schoolchildren (our future jurors, attorneys, judges and witnesses) to observe first-hand the operation of the judicial system;
  2. Supplement students' classroom study of social science, government, and history by showing the practical effects of the law and violations of the law;
  3. Develop respect and understanding of the judicial system;
  4. Improve the public perception of lawyers and judges;
  5. Introduce students to careers in the judicial system;
  6. Teach basic observation, fact-gathering and critical thinking skills; and
  7. Expose young lawyers to public service and give them an opportunity to help expand the minds of impressionable youth.

Program Description

The Barristers Club in coordination with the San Francisco Superior Court, selects specific dates for the tours. The Club then sends promotional materials to the San Francisco public and private middle schools containing the tour dates and asking the school to select three specific dates. The Barristers Club will then review the schools' requests for tours, match schools with dates, and notify the schools of the dates.

A Day in Court tour leader (a new lawyer and Barristers Club member) meets the students, along with teachers and parent chaperones, at a designated location in the courthouse at 9:15 a.m. Schools arrange for their own transportation. Before meeting the group, the tour leader obtains from court staff a list containing the various courtrooms hearing cases that day, as well as a description of the type of case and status of the case. The leader then provides each teacher and chaperone a written calendar of the day's trials. The students will then break up into groups of 8-10 students, each accompanied by a parent or teacher chaperone. The small groups are free to move from courtroom to courtroom and watch a variety of different hearings and trials. The leader moves from courtroom to courtroom to ensure that the groups are behaving properly and to answer any questions. At the end of the tour, around 11:30 a.m., the tour leader meets with the entire group at the original location to debrief them and answer questions. A judge will also make a presentation.

Successful operation of this program requires coordination of several tasks among the court, the Barristers Club, and the schools. Because of the court's limited resources, the Barristers Club is responsible for administering the program. This requires the Club to perform many tasks including coordinating the program among the schools, court, and Barristers Club; conducting the actual tours; recruiting and training tour guides; and drafting and distributing publications.

Organizational Structure

The Day in Court program is staffed and funded by the Barristers Club of San Francisco, which is the new lawyers division of the Bar Association of San Francisco. The Barristers Club has formed alliances with the San Francisco Superior Court and local schools in order to administer the Day in Court program.

For Volunteer Attorneys

We need volunteer attorneys to assist with these field trips! Volunteers will explain how the court works and escort students to observe trials in session. The program will be offered on Thursday mornings from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. from late September through March. Interested in helping? To learn more, email barristers@sfbar.org.

Volunteer Sign-Up Form

For Interested Teachers

This program provides an exciting field trip that enhances your students’ experience and complements your course curriculum. If you’re interested, please fill out this form or contact diversity@sfbar.org for more details.

Teacher Sign-Up Form  How to Prepare: For Students  Courtroom Conduct  Day In Court Program Evalution


Frequently Asked Questions

When is this program offered?

This program is offered most Thursday mornings from 9:15 a.m. until about 12:00 noon from September through March.

Where do we meet?

The attorney tour guide will meet the student group at the new San Francisco County Courthouse, located at 400 McAllister Street (between Van Ness and Polk Street, across from City Hall), at 9:15 a.m. Usually you will meet in room 617 on the 6th Floor.

What will my students get out of this?

Something most students never experience: the chance to observe actual cases being tried in front of real judges and to see how different lawyers present their cases. Your students will also develop a greater respect and understanding of the judicial system, as well as be introduced to careers available within the judicial system.

Will the students sit in one courtroom the whole time?

No, the students and their chaperones will move to several courtrooms to hear various cases. This will allow students to get the maximum exposure to different types of cases and different courtrooms.

What types of cases will the children get to watch?

Civil cases are litigated at the courthouse (e.g., employment discrimination, evictions, medical malpractice, and personal injury cases). There are occasionally misdemeanor criminal cases at this courthouse.

What is the role of the attorney tour guide?

Upon first meeting the group, the attorney tour guide will provide a brief orientation on the courthouse, the California judicial system, and civil trial procedures. At 11:30, the group will re-convene at the original meeting place where the attorney will answer questions, obtain feedback on the program, and a judge will make a presentation for up to half an hour.

Will any written materials be provided?

Written materials are available on the Bar Association website. A schedule of cases will be provided to the teachers and chaperones on the day of the tour.

Who is in charge of transportation?

Each school will be responsible for its own students’ transportation to and from the courthouse.

Will there be chaperones? Who provides them?

We ask each school to provide parent chaperones, on a ratio of 8 students to 1 chaperone, to facilitate this exciting opportunity.

Will there be food and drink available?

Sorry, no food or beverage will be served.

Will the program be offered again next year?

The Barristers Club offers this program on a regular basis each school year.