Budding young legal eagles battled it out at Aberdeen Sheriff Court at the weekend in a mock trials competition.
Pupils from nearly a dozen secondary schools throughout Aberdeenshire took on the role of solicitors, witnesses, clerks and jurors to compete against each other in simulated cases.
Each team got the chance to act as both the prosecution and the defence as they conducted two trials.
Pupils from Aboyne, Banff, Ellon, Fraserburgh, Inverurie, Kemnay, Mackie, Peterhead, Turriff and Westhill academies took part, along with the Gordon Schools in Huntly.
Aboyne won against Turriff in the final of the day-long competition, which was judged by Sheriff Graeme Napier.
Most of the pupils taking part were in fifth and sixth year, although Fraserburgh’s team also had some third years competing.
Banff Academy teacher Amyanette Hazlehurst, who organised this year’s event along with Sarah Fiddes of Ellon Academy, said she had been thoroughly impressed by the standard of the competition.
She said: “It went really, really well. Aboyne ended up winning in the final against Turriff, but it was close all day.
“They each had two cases, so they could prosecute and defend. We picked the cases, and then the teams looked to see how they would prosecute or defend it to win.
“It was incredible to see the talent of the pupils, they were amazing to watch. A lot of them were speaking without scripts, remembering all the facts and figures of the cases. They were all very prepared and organised.
“The confidence they showed was great to see. It was fabulous.”
The contest, organised by Aberdeenshire Council’s education and children’s services with support from the Scottish Court Service, has been running since 2010.
This year’s event was sponsored by Maclay, Murray and Spens LLP, who presented a cash prize to the winning team.
Pupils have said that the event gives them a better understanding of how the criminal justice system and courts work, and past winners have gone on to compete in the UK finals of the Bar Association National Mock Trials.