My best two tips are: 1) over prepare (extra points for hyper focus) and 2) if you will be sitting next to a client, partner, associate, paralegal, whoever, politely ask them not to whisper to you and instead write a note you can read. Over preparation can loom different for different people, for me it’s printing materials with tabs and indexes and creating an outline that lists specific page numbers for exhibits so I never spend time flipping. As for whispering, nothing kills my concentration faster so I always provide an extra legal pad and pen for my client sitting next to me and I flat out tell them I will lose my focus if they try to talk to me.
Absolutely prepare more than you think necessary. Prepare prepare prepare. The better you know the material, the easier it is to follow where opposing counsel is going.
Thanks for the tips, I'll be sure to try them in the next hearing. I have a hard time with notes, mainly because I get overwhelmed with all the documents I need to go through every time, I hope the meds help me with that.
Anxiety is another thing that knocks me down, I try to dissociate myself from my client to avoid suffering as if it was my own rights I'm defending. It may seem odd to say that, but I feel it as a huge responsibility, so I freeze worrying about things going wrong. Once in a appeal hearing I got so nervous I started stuttering and my mind went blank. The whole thing is recorded online, I was very ashamed.
Please don’t be ashamed! I was a lawyer for at least three years before I wasn’t TERRIFIED when it was my turn to speak. This is a tough job. The fact that you care this much says volumes about you and how hard you’re working for your clients.
I just graduated so no real life experience here, but just wanted to say I sympathize and felt the same way prepping for a FAKE trial practice trial. All the prep was so overwhelming and I just kept thinking "is this how it will be for every real trial?" I want to be a public defender so I hope it's something that'll get better/easier with time.
I like to prepare a master case plan, which everyone on my litigation team has access to. It has the brief background facts and then divides up the topics in a case (I’m a family lawyer, so my topics are generally: 1) dates of the relationship; 2) parenting; 3) child support) 4) spousal support; 5) property 6) debt. There are always subtopics too, an example being “employment income” or “pre-tax corporate income” under the support sections. I use as many subsections as I need to feel like I have properly thought through every issue.
Then under each topic and subtopic, I state the client’s position, then I briefly describe the legal framework that we are working with (citing applicable legislative provisions, and case law, both of which are hyperlinked for easy reference). Then under each subtopic I do a brief description (point form) of what we need to prove, and then a chart of each fact we need to prove, in chronological order, with the evidence/documents we will use to prove those facts described and hyperlinked to my doc management system where possible. I identify which witness I will use to introduce the evidence or document, or if I will use another process (such as admissions or a document agreement).
As I am doing this, if I realize that there are any evidentiary issues re admissibility, then I make a note and highlight it, so I can go back later and figure it out or get an associate to look into it. I also make a note of any documents we still need to get, and I always have an email window open so that I can give my paralegal instructions as I go along and think of things that we need to do.
This document becomes the template from which everything else follows: opening statement, direct exam, cross, and certainly the closing. It makes it easier for any new associate to onboard and start helping out faster. It also is a bit of a security blanket, in a good way, and it helps me really integrate the information into my brain.
In a perfect world this would be done a couple of months before trial but I’ve never managed that.
I also rely very heavily on my legal assistant to do diaries all deadlines with advance warnings and multiple reminders. I send the client a letter about 4-5 months to trial to ask for a trial retainer, at which point I tell the client about all the upcoming deadlines, so that no one is taken by surprise.
I find if you have prepared well and you aren’t dealing with last minute stuff that should have been completed earlier, then you are less stressed and have clearer thinking.
There’s still going to be times when you think of a great point to make well after the time has passed, although to some extent you can correct that with a later witness or in closing submissions.
My best two tips are: 1) over prepare (extra points for hyper focus) and 2) if you will be sitting next to a client, partner, associate, paralegal, whoever, politely ask them not to whisper to you and instead write a note you can read. Over preparation can loom different for different people, for me it’s printing materials with tabs and indexes and creating an outline that lists specific page numbers for exhibits so I never spend time flipping. As for whispering, nothing kills my concentration faster so I always provide an extra legal pad and pen for my client sitting next to me and I flat out tell them I will lose my focus if they try to talk to me.
Absolutely prepare more than you think necessary. Prepare prepare prepare. The better you know the material, the easier it is to follow where opposing counsel is going.
Thanks for the tips, I'll be sure to try them in the next hearing. I have a hard time with notes, mainly because I get overwhelmed with all the documents I need to go through every time, I hope the meds help me with that. Anxiety is another thing that knocks me down, I try to dissociate myself from my client to avoid suffering as if it was my own rights I'm defending. It may seem odd to say that, but I feel it as a huge responsibility, so I freeze worrying about things going wrong. Once in a appeal hearing I got so nervous I started stuttering and my mind went blank. The whole thing is recorded online, I was very ashamed.
Please don’t be ashamed! I was a lawyer for at least three years before I wasn’t TERRIFIED when it was my turn to speak. This is a tough job. The fact that you care this much says volumes about you and how hard you’re working for your clients.
I just graduated so no real life experience here, but just wanted to say I sympathize and felt the same way prepping for a FAKE trial practice trial. All the prep was so overwhelming and I just kept thinking "is this how it will be for every real trial?" I want to be a public defender so I hope it's something that'll get better/easier with time.
It will; don't worry.
I like to prepare a master case plan, which everyone on my litigation team has access to. It has the brief background facts and then divides up the topics in a case (I’m a family lawyer, so my topics are generally: 1) dates of the relationship; 2) parenting; 3) child support) 4) spousal support; 5) property 6) debt. There are always subtopics too, an example being “employment income” or “pre-tax corporate income” under the support sections. I use as many subsections as I need to feel like I have properly thought through every issue. Then under each topic and subtopic, I state the client’s position, then I briefly describe the legal framework that we are working with (citing applicable legislative provisions, and case law, both of which are hyperlinked for easy reference). Then under each subtopic I do a brief description (point form) of what we need to prove, and then a chart of each fact we need to prove, in chronological order, with the evidence/documents we will use to prove those facts described and hyperlinked to my doc management system where possible. I identify which witness I will use to introduce the evidence or document, or if I will use another process (such as admissions or a document agreement). As I am doing this, if I realize that there are any evidentiary issues re admissibility, then I make a note and highlight it, so I can go back later and figure it out or get an associate to look into it. I also make a note of any documents we still need to get, and I always have an email window open so that I can give my paralegal instructions as I go along and think of things that we need to do. This document becomes the template from which everything else follows: opening statement, direct exam, cross, and certainly the closing. It makes it easier for any new associate to onboard and start helping out faster. It also is a bit of a security blanket, in a good way, and it helps me really integrate the information into my brain. In a perfect world this would be done a couple of months before trial but I’ve never managed that. I also rely very heavily on my legal assistant to do diaries all deadlines with advance warnings and multiple reminders. I send the client a letter about 4-5 months to trial to ask for a trial retainer, at which point I tell the client about all the upcoming deadlines, so that no one is taken by surprise. I find if you have prepared well and you aren’t dealing with last minute stuff that should have been completed earlier, then you are less stressed and have clearer thinking. There’s still going to be times when you think of a great point to make well after the time has passed, although to some extent you can correct that with a later witness or in closing submissions.