NCAJ Skills Academy

In the fall of 2019, NCAJ leadership assembled two working groups to build a trial skills curriculum for civil and criminal practitioners. Through the efforts of that group along with NCAJ’s Education committee, the NCAJ Skills Academy was developed. 

The goal of the NCAJ Skills Academy is to train the next generation of trial lawyers by offering affordable, on-your-feet training from some of the best trial lawyers across the state. The NCAJ Skills Academy launched with 6 programs in the 2020-21 fiscal year including jury selection, direct and cross-examination, winning without trial for civil practitioners, and pre-trial preparation for criminal practitioners.

“Professional athletes don’t just play on game day. They train, they study, they practice. Professional musicians don’t just play at concert venues. They train, they study, they practice. Being a trial lawyer is no different. We practice law. And we must practice.” 

– Vernon Sumwalt, 2019-2020 NCAJ President