In the spring of 2018, the John Marshall Foundation (JMF), a non-profit organization which promotes the legacy of Chief Justice Marshall, approached the John Marshall American Inn of Court (the Inn) with a proposal to launch a Lawyer/Judge Classroom Visit Project for the Richmond, Virginia metropolitan area. One of the cornerstones of JMF’s educational mission is to increase awareness about the rule of law under the Constitution and to encourage a greater respect for the law and the courts, as described in its websites, www.johnmarshallfoundation.org and www.justiceintheclassroom.net. The purpose of the Inn-JMF partnership was to support JMF’s Justice in the Classroom civics and history program through participation of the Inn’s members in visits to middle and high school civics, history and government classrooms as an Inn public service project. The Inn leadership enthusiastically embraced the initiative, which enabled the John Marshall Foundation to develop and seek Virginia State Bar approval of a continuing legal education course for the fall of 2018 about why Marshall’s U.S. Supreme Court decisions and his tenure on the Court remain relevant today. The educational objective of the project was (i) to reaffirm and increase lawyers’ appreciation of Chief Justice John Marshall’s legacy in their practices, and (ii) to increase the students’ understanding of the far-reaching impact that Marshall’s legacy has on their lives. In addition to receiving a CLE on selected Marshall caselaw, participating Inn lawyers and judges received training to provide law-related education in school visits as a community service. Their assistance through real life examples of their experience helps teachers underscore the importance of the rule of law and introduce students to the Constitution, judicial branch and legal profession. Materials were created for classroom use by lawyers/judges, distributed in a printed booklet and electronically, and placed in a “Lawyer/Judges” section on the publicly available www.justiceintheclassroom.net website. Also included is a copy of the Curriculum Guide that is provided to the more than 400 teachers at JMF’s Justice in the Classroom workshops held across Virginia over
the past three years, impacting more than 30,000 students The lawyer/judge materials coordinate with these Justice in the Classroom teaching materials and address specific Virginia Standards of Learning for Civics, History and Social Studies.
Presented By: The John Marshall American Inn of Court (30116)
Presented: October 2018 - May 2019
Topic Areas: Legal Practice, Public Relations Professionalism, Civility, Special Projects
Materials: Handouts, Links to Educational and Curriculum Material
CLE Approval: N/A
State: Virginia
Hours: N/A
2019 National Program Awards Placement: Outstanding Program Award
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