East students enjoy legal learning lessons with Nebraska Court of Appeals

September 17, 2024

East High School students watched the Constitution change from textbook-based theory to real-life history during a special event with the Nebraska Court of Appeals.
 
The Spartans joined more than 175 high school students from seven area school districts for the Nebraska Court of Appeals College Campus Initiative. Justices, lawyers and students gathered in the McDonald Theatre at Nebraska Wesleyan University for a full day of legal proceedings in recognition of Constitution Day.

 
Chief Judge Frankie Moore, Judge Riko Bishop and Judge Francie Riedmann listened to arguments in three cases in front of a packed auditorium in the morning. Judges Lawrence Welch Jr., David Arterburn and Michael Pirtle presided over oral arguments in the afternoon.
 
East seniors Gabriel and Khoi said they benefited in many ways from their experience. In addition to learning more about the inner workings of the Court of Appeals, they also gained personal insights about the judges. They took part in question-and-answer sessions with justices after the cases.
 
“I thought what was most interesting was seeing what happens in a courtroom, because most of the time we just hear about what happens in a courtroom,” Gabriel said. “The closest thing we’ve ever gotten to seeing how a courtroom works is probably reading books about it. I just thought it was really cool to see the justices in action with real lawyers.”

 
“I do appreciate the process and how everything works in the Court of Appeals,” Khoi said. “I don’t have a specific interest in the law field now, but I did like to see how things work in case I might have one in the future. It was good watching everything happen.”
 
Michaela Schleicher chairs East’s social studies department and teaches three Advanced Placement courses. She and fellow East teacher Dylan Kitchen brought their classes to NWU to help students learn about the Court of Appeals.
 
“It was great to help them understand how the court system works,” Schleicher said. “It can be hard to understand when you read it just on paper, so to witness the actual process and understand that the purpose of an appeal isn’t guilty or not guilty, but it’s reviewing the law, is something that will help them hone in on that content in class.”

 
The Nebraska Court of Appeals is Nebraska’s second-highest court. If one side in a district or state trial feels there has been a legal error or misinterpretation, they can appeal the outcome. Judges listen to oral arguments in three-person panels and determine how to proceed.
 
Moore smiled several minutes before the event as she prepared for the day. The Northeast High School alum graduated from law school in 1983 and was a trial lawyer in North Platte for 17 years. She then joined the Nebraska Court of Appeals and has been chief judge since 2014.
 
Moore said her time as a Rocket provided a solid foundation for her future legal career.
 
“I would say it was just a good general background,” Moore said. “At that point in time I wasn’t necessarily interested in law, but I knew I needed to pursue future education. I had great teachers and they inspired me to continue my education.”

 
Riedmann and Bishop later told students that they had taken less traditional paths into law. Riedmann studied journalism and mass communications at Kearney State College and interned at a radio station before pursuing a legal career. She graduated from law school in 1993 and joined the Court of Appeals in 2012.
 
Bishop earned a bachelor’s degree in English education from Kearney State and worked as an English teacher and creative writing instructor from 1978-85. She decided to become a judicial law clerk and attorney and joined the Court of Appeals in 2013.
 
Schleicher and Khoi both said it was encouraging to hear about their different career backgrounds.
 
“I think one of the things it did was show the students that law can fit for almost anybody and it can happen at different points in life,” Schleicher said. “It doesn’t have to be something that’s a make-or-break decision for today, but it can be something long-term that they consider.”
 
“It wasn’t linear for any of these judges,” Khoi said. “It was very, ‘Oh, I did this step and then I turned the other direction.’ It broadened my perspective in that I do have options when I grow up.”
 
Judges also spoke with students about the challenging aspects of their careers and what advice they would give to future lawyers. Schleicher and Gabriel said those stories made them easy to relate to.

“It was nice to see that judges are people,” Schleicher said. “To be able to give the kids that personal element was nice. The fact they talked about that a lot of times, cases can be really hard to hear, so the kids could understand that it’s not always, ‘I don’t like you’ in a case, but it’s ‘We’re trying to understand and review the law the best way we can.’ It was really good for them to hear that.”
 
“I really got to see the people behind the position,” Gabriel said. “During a trial, we just get to see them up there doing their jobs, but here we got to connect with them and ask real questions about what their lives look like. It was really inspiring to hear.”

Learn more about LPS Social Studies curriculum on our website at https://home.lps.org/socialstudies.
 
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