On Thursday, the CCIP (www.theccip.com) exchange visitors had a unique opportunity to observe a court trail in person. The Honorable Kenneth Holder, Justice of the New York State Supreme Court welcomed the group into his courtroom to give them a first-hand experience of the U.S. legal system.

Judge Kenneth Holder was elected to the Queens County Supreme Court in 2008 and began his law career in 1985 after earning his J.D. degree from the University of Toledo College of Law.

Owen Qi, a law student at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, was an activity coordinator for this visit to Justice Holder’s court.

“I had been looking forward to this event ever since I first heard about it,” Owen said. “I’m so appreciative to Justice Holder for allowing us to observe a felony trial. It gave me a much better understanding of the court system in this country and I learned a lot from what he told us.”

Justice Holder took time to talk directly to the exchange visitors about the American justice system and answered questions from the group.

“It’s opportunities like this that made me want to join CCIP,” said Yichun Fang, another activity coordinator. Fang attends the University of Hong Kong. “You can read books and newspapers, but seeing a real trial in person is so much more educational.”