About Us
Who We Are
Welcome to Emory University’s Ben Pius Mock Trial Team! We are a student-run undergraduate trial advocacy team that competes annually as a part of the American Mock Trial Association (AMTA).
In 1980, Emory junior and student leader Benjamin S. Pius founded the first organization at Emory dedicated to providing pre-law advising for undergraduate students. However, five days before the club was set to host their first meeting, Ben Pius lost his life in a tragic automobile accident. To honor his memory, the organization was renamed the Benjamin S. Pius Pre-Law Society and advocated to support undergraduate students passionate about law and civil advocacy for the next two decades.
One initiative that the Benjamin S. Pius Pre-Law Society fought for was the creation and support of an undergraduate mock trial team at Emory. Founded in the early 2000s, Ben Pius Mock Trial has since flourished into a team of (L)Eagles from all academic backgrounds, joined by a love for public speaking, theatre, writing, and debate.
Throughout the year, from invitational fall tournaments to the competitive AMTA season in the spring, our team encourages skills like confident risk-taking, good sportsmanship, and achievement on a national level—and we strive to grow that legacy. Our program has earned a place at the American Mock Trial Association National Championship Tournament for numerous consecutive years, placing 8th in the nation in 2017, 12th in the nation in 2018, 6th in the nation in 2019, 4th in the nation in 2021, 11th in the nation in 2023. and 4th in the nation in 2024.