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Athletic Trainers know the pressure of making split-second decisions on the field. But what happens when those decisions are dissected in a courtroom?
This summer, USC’s Department of Exercise Science teamed up with the Joseph F. Rice School of Law to find out—by putting Athletic Trainers and law students through a high-stakes mock trial.
The scenario: a fictional 17-year-old football star suffers a concussion, struggles academically, loses his scholarship, and sues his school’s head Athletic Trainer and district.
“Unfortunately, lawsuits that focus on prevention, treatment, and documentation are becoming more common,” said faculty member Amy Fraley. “We thought this type of scenario would be the perfect opportunity to prepare both athletic training and law students for situations they may encounter in their careers.”
In the Karen J. Williams Courtroom, Athletic Training student Chris Gresham played the role of the injured athlete, while past SCATA president Sheila Gordon stood in as the defendant Athletic Trainer. A sitting judge presided, law students argued the case, and a jury of Athletic Training students weighed the evidence.
The trial didn’t end with a verdict, but that wasn’t the point. Instead, it forced Athletic Trainers to think critically about emergency management, concussion protocols, and—most importantly—documentation.
“Witnessing it first-hand, especially with a case such as this that we’ve seen and even managed in our clinical rotations, was eye-opening,” Gresham reflected.
The event drew nearly ten times the usual pre-conference crowd, underscoring the profession’s growing awareness of its legal vulnerabilities. As clinical professor Jim Mensch put it:
“This collaboration highlighted the reality that Athletic Trainers are accountable not just to athletes, but sometimes to the law. Being prepared is essential—on the field and in the courtroom.”
Read all the details here!
