The Thomas R. Kline Institute of Trial Advocacy is the only facility of its kind in the U.S., allowing students to hone their skills in a venue that combines the grandeur of a historic courthouse with contemporary courtroom technology, in the very heart of a big-city legal community.

Located in a Philadelphia landmark that has been impeccably restored, the institute provides students with a realistic setting in which to practice their advocacy skills and to meet attorneys and judges who visit for conferences and receptions.

• The ceremonial courtroom on the mezzanine is built to scale, with a bench that can accommodate a panel of judges, a witness stand, jury box and gallery seating for 80 observers. Proceedings can be recorded or live-streamed through cameras and microphones ingeniously concealed inside lighting fixtures.  
• Three more practice rooms create spaces for seminars and for members of our nationally ranked Trial Team to prepare for competition.
• Switchable glass in one of the courtrooms becomes opaque at the touch of a button, creating a private space for practice.
• A main hall can be used for quiet study and receptions.
• A boardroom provides additional space for seminars and conferences.

Several classes meet each semester in the institute, which also provides a space for members of the Trial Team to practice and prepare for competition.

The gift of law school benefactor Tom Kline, the institute serves as both an unparalleled training facility and a living monument to the indelible value of a trial by jury, as enshrined in Article I, Section 6 the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, which was custom woven into the carpet: “Trial by jury shall be as heretofore, and the right thereof remain inviolate.”