Our Story

Empire Mock Trial is an education nonprofit that started as a father-son project in 2007. Six years before our founding, Justin Matarrese saw a flyer at his New York City public high school, Tottenville High School, calling for students interested in “debate, acting or the law to attend a mock trial team meeting!” Intrigued, he stopped by room C313 to find out more.

The rest is history.

With the help of his father, Gregory Matarrese, Justin started the “THS Mock Trial Association” to fundraise for Tottenville and to organize a new mock trial competition. Naming it the “Empire City Invitational,” he hoped to give students from his alma mater and across the United States, the opportunity to participate in a challenging extra curricular program, while experiencing one of the world’s most vibrant cities: the Big Apple.

The competition was modeled after a college mock trial invitational, offering students the benefits and fun of a mock trial, without the pressure of competition. Every team would participate in four mock trials without the possibility of being eliminated. What’s more, this program would actively encourage students to interact and to treat one another with respect inside and outside of the courtroom.

The inaugural event was a success. It brought together 11 high schools from 6 states, and crowned a New Mexico public school as its first champion. The following year, it expanded in size and reach, welcoming international schools for the first time. This led us to rebrand, in year three, as the Empire Mock Trial Association, Inc., a name we hold to this day.

As our Leadership Team has matured in age, so has Empire Mock Trial’s mission. An organization that once told students “your legal education starts here” shifted to one that “educates, connects and empowers young people to be compassionate and capable citizens.” Introduced in 2014, our new mission charted the path for all programmatic changes that followed. New competitions were created to increase opportunity; financial aid was offered to increase access; cases highlighting social inequalities were drafted to increase empathy and widen perspective; service projects were introduced to instill an appreciation for public service; and new activities were developed (e.g. Guest Witness and Pre-Trial) to improve critical thinking and foster collaboration among students.

How We Got Here

The Empire story has been made possible because of the kindness, dedication, patience, and grace of an incredible group of people, who have been by our side during this amazing journey.

The nonprofit sector brings with it unique challenges; resources can be hard to come by and social capital is limited. The individuals we honor below have made countless contributions to Empire, often prioritizing Empire’s needs over their own. They’ve sacrificed time, money, sleep, hobbies and professional endeavors to support our young people.

They are not just part of our story; they are our story. We cannot thank them enough.