Nichols School Mock Trial Team Lauds Attorney Coach for Propelling Them to State Tournament
5.16.2025
The Nichols School, a co-ed private school in Buffalo, is headed to the New York State Bar Association’s state tournament for the first time in the school’s history. The team beat out several Erie County heavyweights including Clarence High School and Williamsville East High School to make it to the regional tournament. Nichols beat both opponents Batavia High School and Jamestown High School in a best of three tournament.
The nearly all female mock trial team and coaches at Nichols wasted no time in thanking their attorney coaches for the team’s success this year.
“The big difference this year was really our attorney coaches, who are just phenomenal,” says Nichols teacher Aryana Maritime. “This team is a great group. I love working with them and we practice every day, even over breaks.”
Buffalo attorney James Graber turns the attention back on the students and teachers for their commitment to the mock trial team and its rigorous practice schedule.
“The teacher coaches here run a tight ship, and we practice constantly,” he said “I think that makes the difference between Nichols and other schools, especially in Erie County. Most students here do only mock trial and I think that shows in the performance.”
Graber admits that he started volunteering with mock trial teams as a young associate at the behest of one of his firm’s partners. After one season, he was hooked and has been coaching ever since.
“It’s very rewarding, seeing the development of the kids,” he said. “Students I have coached over the years are working at my law firm now. One student I coached was just accepted to Georgetown Law School and another works as a paralegal at my firm. So that’s how you know the great benefit of it, as a lawyer is seeing the impact you have on kids, their careers and their lives.”
The statewide Mock Trial program and tournament is sponsored by the New York State Bar Association and funded in part by a grant from The New York Bar Foundation. It brings thousands of high school students together each year to learn about the law, practice public speaking and develop life skills. The state tournament with eight regional teams takes place in Albany each May.
