Coaches
Coach and Faculty Advisor
Esther Nir
Esther Nir is an Associate Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice and Director of NJCU’s Honors Program. She received her Juris Doctor from Fordham Law School and her Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from Rutgers University.
She served as a prosecutor in Queens County, New York. In addition to teaching in NJCU’s Criminal Justice Department and coaching the Mock Trial Team, Dr. Nir also teaches in the Honors Program. She specializes in qualitative research methods and interviews various court actors in connection to her research efforts.
Dr. Nir loves coaching the mock trial team: “I am grateful to work with such talented and hardworking students. All of the laughing, lamenting, and strategizing is an adventure I will never forget.”
Assistant Coaches
Michael is a current student at Harvard Law School and is a member of their mock trial team. Michael started helping the NJCU Mock Trial program in November 2020 after a career in mock that started in high school where he competed for 2 years before competing again in undergrad. While in undergrad, he was the captain of his team for 2 years, both years of which, the team went to Nationals. “I wouldn’t have ever thought about going to law school if it weren’t for mock trial. When I first tried out in high school, I hadn’t realized how much of my life would end up being consumed by it, but I would definitely make the same decision again.” Michael is glad he's able to stay involved and looks forward to a successful year.
Tanushree Bansal is an attorney at a law firm in New York City and assistant mock trial coach at New Jersey City University. She graduated from Yale Law School Class
of 2022 where she was a member of the Community and Economic Development Clinic and chair of the Yale Urban Law and Policy Society. From a young age, Tanushree was interested in issues of economic justice and wealth inequality; she wished to understand why some neighborhoods and people are poor while others thrive. Her intellectual interests inspired her to major in Economics at Rutgers University and later pursue her J.D. at Yale. In the past, Tanushree has worked for the City of Boston’s Housing Innovation Lab on local ADU policy, for Fair Share Housing Center on Mt. Laurel law, and for the United States Congress Joint Committee on Taxation. Tanushree loves New Jersey; she grew up attending the public schools of Jersey City and is excited to teach NJCU students and young aspiring lawyers in her hometown.