LAW 7052

Advanced Persuasive Writing and Oral Advocacy

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2017-2018.

Students will master the art of persuasive writing and oral advocacy. Lecture topics include: knowing your audience; writing a Statement of Facts that appears objective but subjectively persuades; what good judges are taught about good writing; methods to achieve clarity, brevity and logic; issue selection; the effective use of precedent; establishing credibility; understanding non-legal factors that influence decisions; the interplay between judges and their law clerks; appellate procedure and standards of review; the winning opening statement; and handling questions from the bench. Students will critique actual briefs, judicial opinions and oral arguments for technique and persuasive value. Guest speakers, including a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and a federal prosecutor, will provide advice and recommendations. Students will apply what they have learned to the drafting of an appellate brief based on an actual court record. The brief will be written in stages and followed by one-on-one critiques. Students' will also present an oral argument. Initial practice arguments are critiqued by the professor and student panels (to permit students to see an argument from a judge's perspective), and the final argument is judged by the professor.

When Offered Fall.

Satisfies Requirement The course can be used to satisfy the writing requirement or the skills requirement, but not both.

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