In February, when Thompson Rivers University law students compete in the BC Court of Appeal Moot, Kamloops criminal lawyer Danielle Ching McNamee will be their co-coach and mentor.

“The moot is very good practice for the students,” said Ching McNamee. “A lot of them want to be barristers.” Ching McNamee is regularly in court defending people charged with criminal offences and representing people being investigated by the police.

As part of the moot, the third-year law students will research an actual Court of Appeal case. The students will create arguments for both sides of the case and argue their positions in front of actual Court of Appeal justices in Victoria next month. The original case is from Alberta and concerns a bank and a person who was defrauded. Ching McNamee and Desmond MacMillan, an Alberta lawyer, will mentor and coach the students as they research the law and create arguments.

Ching McNamee is mentoring the TRU law students as they prepare to compete against law students from UVic and UBC. She provides valuable guidance as they create strategies for the case. Ching McNamee herself is part of a legal team which just finished a year-long murder trial.

“I love the mentorship I can give students and I love resolving legal problems, considering different legal problems, and presenting arguments to a judge,” said Ching McNamee.