Do you share my occasional fear, when addressing a large group, whether it be a jury or a room full of potential clients, that I will forget what I’ve prepared to say? Go ahead,…
Read ArticleIt’s probably my mind playing tricks on me, but I have a foggy memory, from younger days, of removing my belt and shoes in order to forge through the security screening apparatus and into…
Read ArticleWhy introduce rhetorical figures into your legal writing? Well, if done right, they can elevate good writing to great writing. As pointed out by that acknowledged legal writing guru, Bryan Garner, in The Elements…
Read ArticleI last wrote, rather flippantly I thought, about why, when given the choice, I generally shun arbitration in favor of mediation. One of the comments I received, from über-neutral Deborah Rothman, suggested that I…
Read ArticleBut when I do, I vastly prefer mediation to arbitration. Here are five reasons why: 1. The Split-The-Baby Problem. I’ve had retired judges and other neutrals tell me they don’t like presiding over arbitrations…
Read ArticleAgain and again the message I hear from accomplished trial lawyers is that preparation is the absolute key to success in the courtroom. I previously wrote a post endorsing what I will term a “guerrilla”…
Read ArticleThe media, film, and TV have long fueled a belief that the most important quality any lawyer can possess is the ability to conduct a withering cross-examination of a pivotal witness. As practitioners, we know…
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