Entries Categorized as 'Persuasion/Advocacy'

The 30-Second Message

October 24, 2005

Effective advocacy requires an ability to explain our basic theory in 30 seconds. To understand why, see Milo Frank’s How to Get Your Point Across in 30 Seconds or Less 11 (1986):
“[W]hen the time comes to make your point, make it in 30 seconds. It doesn’t matter if you have five minutes or [...]

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Theme & Theory

October 17, 2005

A simple overall theory is our guiding light throughout the entire trial.
Steven Lubet, Modern Trial Advocacy 8 (1993), describes how to examine your case. Ask yourself: What’s so compelling about my client’s position? Write down in one paragraph the story of what happened, why it happened, and how that entitles your [...]

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Rule 1

October 9, 2005

The first rule of persuasion is personal advocacy. We want the judge to believe that: (1) we know the most about this case and (2) we will not deceive the Court. See H. Stern, Trying Cases to Win (1991).
James McElhaney, McElhaney’s Trial Notebook 144 (4th ed. 2005), puts it this way:
“Underlying [...]

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Simplifying the issues

August 21, 2005

The New York TImes shows how expert witnesses can make a difference, especially as litigation becomes more complicated.
Jonathan D. Glater writes (excerpt):
TRIAL lawyers may be the peacocks of the courtroom, strutting before a judge or jury and making arguments with a sense of drama and style, but often these days it’s a tweedy professor, explaining [...]

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Moving judge or jury

July 23, 2005

On the Media tells of writer-turned-jury consultant Neal Howard. The interview touches on story telling, narrative strategies and structures, and themes. It includes this comment on the focus of the decision-maker (excerpt):
People have an inherent interest in justice. Justice is something that we’re very passionate about, as opposed to, let’s say, the finer [...]

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Leading questions

October 13, 2004

The New York Times uses the presidential debates between Bush and Kerry to teach a trial advocacy lesson on the difference between direct examination and cross examination.
Christopher Scanlan writes (excerpt):
Unlike its rhetorical opposite, the closed-ended question, which limits possible answers to yes, no and “I don’t know,” open-ended questions require an expansive response. If questions [...]

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