Openings of Openings
Why Demonstrative Aids Are Critical in Every Case
How Safetyism Is Driving High Plaintiff Verdicts - IMS Insights Podcast Episode 68
How Voir Dire Fits with Appellate Practice | Robert Swafford | Texas Appellate Law Podcast
In this episode of his "The Trial Lawyer's Handbook" podcast series, litigation attorney Dan Small describes different approaches to opening statements in a trial, outlining three common styles: dramatic, theme-oriented and...more
In this episode of his "The Trial Lawyer's Handbook" podcast series, litigation attorney Dan Small discusses why demonstrative aids are critical in every case. Mr. Small shares why he believes simple demonstratives, when...more
Trial lawyers work in words: language that is precise, economical, and influential. Those words are the water that litigators swim in, and for that reason, the absence of words can be a little uncomfortable. That can be an...more
I remember once sitting in court early into the defense opening statement, and the attorney was busy thanking the jurors, again. Even though they had already heard the spiel from the other side, and from this attorney’s...more
There’s a cartoon that shows a the philosopher, Plato, sitting on the grass of Athens with a modern-day politician (variously, it is Karl Rove or Donald Trump), with the latter character saying to Plato, “But surely you agree...more
The title asks a provocative question: “When it comes to jury trials, should you tell a story or stick to the facts?” The piece in the “Your Voice” section of the current ABA Journal is written by Drury Sherrod, a litigation...more
“Epistimology,” or the question of how we know what we know, seems like an abstract rather than a practical idea. But when it comes to the practical task of assessing and persuading jurors, the epistemological habits of those...more
Join Robins Kaplan For Trial Advocacy 2018: Pulling The Curtain Back on October 9th, in Minneapolis, MN. ...more
The two terms are often used interchangeably, but “rebuttal” doesn’t mean the same thing as “refutation.” The latter amounts to an attack on the arguments of the other side, and the former means rebuilding your own arguments...more
Lately, the nation has been divided, again, on a critical question of public policy. And, again, that division reveals some stark differences in the ways each side views the facts and understands the values at stake. This...more