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The Barrister’s Toolbox

Tag: analogies

The Problem with Problems.

So do you want to know what the problem is with problems? Most people are like an ostrich with its head buried in the sand in fear of what they might see. We all have a tendency to ignore our problems and procrastinate. This is fatal thinking or à total lack of thinking. Instead of waiting →

closing arguments, Direct examination, dos and don’ts, Evidence, Jury Selection, mock trial, Trial Advocacy

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ad hominem, Adversarial system, advocacy, analogies, Analogies anecdotes, apologies, challenges for cause, character, Closing argument, Evidence (law)

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Sep 30, 2015
Closing Argument: Begin Strong, End Stronger and Sock It to Them!

As far as I am concerned, when it comes to your closing argument, you want to begin strong and end strong. You are the director, producer and central author of the closing argument. Syd Field is the author of a number of books on screenwriting. His principles have equal application to the formulation of a closing →

Uncategorized

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Adversarial system, advocacy, analogies, Analogies anecdotes, analogy, Closing argument, Gerry Spence

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Sep 4, 2015
Closing with Style

Style and Delivery As mentioned in my last post, there are a number of great sources worth consulting for purposes of delivering a closing argument. On that is particularly appropriate is the a speech book called, Speak Like Churchill Stand Like Lincoln by James Humes. Here are a few short comments on this topic: Tone →

Uncategorized

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“reply letter doctrine”, advocacy, analogies, Analogies anecdotes, mock trial, mock trial competition, mock trial team, Parables; analogies; fables; storytelling; closing arguments, quotes, style and delivery

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Jun 17, 2015
Closing Argument – What to Do When Your Opponent Deals from the Bottom of the Deck

It is important to stick with the argument that you’ve planned out. Then aggressively and positively put forward your case. You don’t want to waste too much time responding to the other side’s argument to the detriment of their own. You want to help the jurors reach their own conclusions about the case with the use →

closing arguments, Trial Advocacy

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analogies, Gerry Spence, parables, Parables; analogies; fables; storytelling; closing arguments, trial advocacy, trial notebook

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Jun 16, 2015
Closing Argument: How to Combat Guilt by Association

Oftentimes, we have clients who through no fault of their own grow up in difficult circumstances or are simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. The opposing attorney may try to paint your client as less than worthy in the eyes of the law. However, remember that lady justice holds the scales of →

closing arguments, Trial Advocacy

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analogies, Closing argument, Guilt by Association, Justice is Blind, Lady Justice, Parable of the Weeds and the Wheat, parables, Swan and the Crows, trial advocacy

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May 21, 2015
Statistics: Why Figures Don’t Lie, But Liars Figure…

More and more, figures and statistical information finds it way into litigation, both criminal and civil. At some point in your career as an attorney you will need to understand what can and cannot be accomplished in utilizing statistics. Most laypersons and attorneys are ill-equipped to handle such information. Oftentimes experts can find refuge in →

Evidence, Trial Advocacy

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analogies, Calculated Risks, Expert Witness, Laurence Tribe, Mark Twain, Math on Trial, Mathematics on Trial, Michael Freeman, Monty Hall problem, Naked Statistics, People v. Collins, Reference manual on Scientific Evidence, Samuel Clemons, statistics

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Apr 28, 2014
What to Do When They Call Your Client a Liar, a Fraud and a Cheat.

The defense has enlisted the aid of a hired gun “expert” who insinuates or is going to testify that your client is a malingerer or a fraud. What can you do to address such tactics? Can you exclude the testimony? Should you address it head on or skirt the issue? Hopefully, this blog will offer →

closing arguments, Trial Advocacy, Uncategorized

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analogies, Expert Witness, Motion in limine, Parables; analogies; fables; storytelling; closing arguments, Rules of evidence

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Apr 1, 2014
Jurors: Helping Them, Help You.

“I consider trial by jury as the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution.” —Thomas Jefferson to Thomas Paine, 1789. Jurors… They are truly the heart and soul of our justice system. No invention known to man has a greater potential to →

closing arguments, Trial Advocacy, Uncategorized

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analogies, closing arguments, Gerry Spence, jurors, parables, the old man the bird and the boy, Thomas Jefferson

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Oct 6, 2013
Distraction, Misdirection and the Art of Verbal Jujitsu.

Distraction, misdirection and appeals to prejudice are common tools of the defense. Ideally, you keep these improper arguments or evidence from the jury through the use of motions in limine. However, sometimes this is impossible to do. What do you do to keep the jury from being mislead or distracted by meaningless side issues? How →

closing arguments, Trial Advocacy

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ad hominem, analogies, Closing argument, Parables; analogies; fables; storytelling; closing arguments

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Apr 1, 2012