SCJFL 2025–2026 Middle School Debate Tournament Invitation

Greetings! For the 2025–2026 season, the Southern California Junior Forensics League is pleased to announce six regular-season middle school debate tournaments. Three tournaments will be held in person, and three will be held online. This document shall serve as the invitation for all six tournaments. All times are Pacific.

Tournament Dates and Events

A list of each tournament, including its date, format, and available events, can be found here.

The following events will be offered at each regular-season middle school debate tournament:

Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Public Forum Debate
Big Questions Debate
World Schools Debate

Congress

Lincoln-Douglas, Public Forum, and Big Questions Debate will use the applicable NSDA topic for the month or season in which the tournament is held. Prepared World Schools motions will be released at noon Pacific two weeks before each tournament. The Congress docket will be released at noon Pacific two weeks before the designated Congress tournament.

In-Person Tournament Location

Regular-season in-person tournaments will be held at:

Culver City Middle School
4601 Elenda St.

Culver City, CA 90230

Additional information regarding parking, tournament headquarters, room locations, and campus procedures will be posted on the applicable ForensicsTournament.net tournament page.

Schedule for Lincoln-Douglas, Public Forum, and Big Questions Debate

9:00–10:30 AM: Round 1
10:45 AM–12:00 PM: Round 2
12:30–1:45 PM: Round 3
2:00–3:15 PM: Round 4
3:30–4:45 PM: Round 5, elimination-preliminary round
5:00–6:15 PM: Round 6, elimination-preliminary round
7:00 PM: Awards

Schedule for World Schools and Congress

9:00–10:30 AM: Round 1
10:45 AM–12:00 PM: Round 2
2:00–3:15 PM: Round 3
3:30–4:45 PM: Final Round, where required
5:00–6:15 PM: Final Round, if a semifinal round is required at 3:30 PM
7:00 PM: Awards

Tournament staff may adjust round times when necessary. Any changes will be announced through the applicable ForensicsTournament.net tournament page.

Eligibility

Team Eligibility: Participation in SCJFL tournaments is limited to schools, after-school programs, and homeschool programs that have joined the SCJFL, paid all applicable league fees, and remain in good standing with the league. Teams must also satisfy the membership and eligibility requirements established in the SCJFL Charter and By-Laws.

In-person tournaments are held in Southern California. Online tournaments are open to eligible teams from any geographic location, provided the team joins the SCJFL, pays all applicable league and tournament fees, and complies with SCJFL rules.

Judge Eligibility: Judges assigned to middle school events must be in tenth grade or above.

Competitor Eligibility: Middle school competitors must be enrolled in grades 6–8 or be at a comparable academic level consistent with the spirit of middle school competition.

Multiple Entry: Competitors may enter no more than one debate event at each tournament. Competitors may not be entered as members of multiple debate teams or in both debate and Congress at the same tournament unless expressly authorized by the Tournament Director.

Registration

Competitors must be registered through ForensicsTournament.net.

Registration will open at 6:00 PM Pacific thirty (30) days before each tournament. Registration will close at 8:00 PM Pacific on the Tuesday before the tournament. Entry fees will be frozen when registration closes.

Judging Requirement

One judge covers up to two (2) debate entries. One judge covers up to five (5) Congress entries.

All judges are obligated to remain available for every round, including elimination-preliminary and final rounds, unless dismissed by tournament staff. The tournament reserves the right to deny entry to schools that do not provide their required judges. The tournament will make every reasonable effort to avoid denying entry for this reason.

All judges must submit their ballots electronically. Each judge must have a laptop or tablet with a reliable Internet connection. Judges participating in an online tournament must also have a functioning camera and microphone.

Judge training is the responsibility of the school entering the judge. Judges must also attend any judge-training session provided by the Tournament Host at the beginning of the tournament.

Every ballot must include the required decision, speaker scores or ranks, and sufficient substantive feedback. Oral comments are not a substitute for a completed written ballot. Judges who submit blank or substantially incomplete eBallots may be charged a missed-ballot fee. Ballot sufficiency shall be determined by the Tournament Director and/or Ombudsman.

Judges may not independently disqualify competitors. If a judge believes that a rule violation has occurred, the judge should complete the ballot according to the applicable SCJFL procedures and report the matter to tournament staff.

Advancement and Awards

Lincoln-Douglas, Public Forum, and Big Questions Debate will ordinarily consist of four preliminary rounds followed by two elimination-preliminary rounds. Advancement to Rounds 5 and 6 will be determined according to the procedures established in the SCJFL bylaws. Competitors who advance to Round 5 or later will receive a physical award.

World Schools and Congress will have a final round when required by the number of participating entries. If a semifinal round is required, it will ordinarily be held at 3:30 PM, followed by the final round at 5:00 PM. An event with a sufficiently small field may conclude without a separate final round.

The Tournament Director will determine the appropriate advancement and round structure based on the number of competitors who participate.

Entry Fees

Big Questions Debate: $30 per entry
Lincoln-Douglas Debate: $30 per entry
Congressional Debate: $30 per entry
Public Forum Debate: $40 per entry
World Schools Debate: $60 per entry

Schools will be charged $125 for each uncovered debate entry and $30 for each uncovered Congress entry.

Changes or drops made after registration closes will be charged a $25 nuisance fee for each change.

A student who drops from the tournament will be charged a $25 no-show fee if the coach notifies tournament staff before the student’s first missed round. A student who drops or fails to appear without prior notice will be charged a $35 no-show fee.

Judge changes made after registration closes will be charged a $25 judge nuisance fee. Judge drops made after 12:01 AM on the Friday before the tournament will be charged a $150 judge no-show fee, in addition to any uncovered-entry fees created by the drop.

A judge who fails to accept an assigned ballot will be charged a $25 missed-ballot fee for the first offense. The second and each subsequent offense will result in a $50 fee.

Tournament-delay fees ranging from $20 to $100 may be assessed based on the severity of a delay caused by a school, competitor, coach, or judge.

Teams, coaches, and judges are responsible for reviewing all applicable fines and penalties included in the SCJFL bylaws.

Fee sheets will be finalized during the week of the tournament. Once fees are finalized, payment instructions will be available through the tournament’s ForensicsTournament.net page.

Quick Fee Reference

Fees may be cumulative. For example, a judge dropped after 12:01 AM on Friday may generate both the $150 judge-drop fee and additional uncovered-entry fees.

Recording

Competitors, judges, coaches, parents, and spectators may not record any tournament performance or round without prior authorization from the SCJFL President. Teams are responsible for informing their parents and spectators of this prohibition.

Rules

All tournament rules are contained in the SCJFL Charter and By-Laws, available at SCJFL.org.

Tournament Director

Robert Cannon
Southern California Junior Forensics League

Appendix: Judge Pre-Round Preamble

All SCJFL judges must read the official Judge Pre-Round Preamble aloud before each round, making only those adjustments necessary for the specific event, including time signals, online procedures, and Internet-use rules.

“Hello everyone, and welcome.

My name is [Judge Name], and I will be your judge for this round of [Event Name]. I have read the rules for this event and will follow them as I make my decision. Before we begin, I need to share a few reminders:

[If online] Please keep your video cameras turned on during the round.

[If online] Keep your microphones muted unless it is your turn to speak.

According to the rules for this event, Internet use is/is not allowed. If I am uncertain, I will contact the tab room before we proceed.

For time signals, in this event [the judge should state whether time signals are being used and, if so, explain what the signals are].

If you have any questions about the rules or about how the round will run, please ask me now.

If there is something you need to check with the tab room, please do so before we begin.

Once everyone is ready, we will start the round.”