North Catholic High School is one of 16 Pennsylvania high schools advancing to the 38th annual Pennsylvania Bar Association Statewide High School Mock Trial Competition finals.

The finals will be held virtually Friday, Saturday and Tuesday. The competition is coordinated and sponsored by the association’s Young Lawyers Division.

This year, 232 teams from 199 high schools competed in district and regional levels of Pennsylvania’s mock trial competition in hopes of gaining one of the 16 spots at the statewide competition, held virtually for the first time. Pennsylvania’s competition is one of the largest in the nation.

The winning team of the state championship will represent Pennsylvania in the national mock trial finals, which will be held virtually May 13 to 15.

On Friday, all 16 teams will participate in two rounds of competition. Up to eight teams that have won their first two rounds of competition will advance to a round of competitions Saturday.

The two winners of this round (or the two highest-ranking teams) will advance to the state final Tuesday. President Judge Kimberly Berkeley Clark, Fifth Judicial District of Pennsylvania, will serve as judge.

This year’s hypothetical case, “Estate of George Romero v. Ashley Williams,” is a criminal trial to determine whether the defendant is guilty of murdering George Romero with a chemical the defendant prepared.

During the competition, eight-member student teams are given the opportunity to argue both sides of the case in an actual courtroom before a judge.

The students, who play the roles of lawyers, witnesses, plaintiffs and defendants, are assisted by teacher coaches and lawyer advisers in preparing for competition.

Lawyers and community leaders serve as jurors for the mock trials. The juries determine the winners in each trial based on the teams’ abilities to prepare their cases, present arguments and follow court rules.

For more information about the competition, visit the PBA website at pabar.org/site/For-the-Public/Mock-Trial-Competition.