LAW 7052

Advanced Persuasive Writing and Oral Advocacy

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2020-2021.

Students will master the skill of persuasive writing and oral advocacy before trial and appellate courts. Lecture topics include: knowing your audience; writing a Statement of Facts that is objective but subjectively persuades; what good judges are taught about good writing; methods to achieve clarity, brevity and logic; the science of persuasion; issue selection; the effective use of precedent; establishing credibility; understanding non-legal factors that influence decisions; the interplay between judges and their law clerks; trial motions and appellate procedure; standards of review; a suggested approach to organizing and writing a trial memorandum or brief; mastering techniques of public speaking in the courtroom; the winning opening statement and closing argument; and handling questions from the bench. Students will critique actual trial memoranda and briefs, judicial opinions, and oral arguments for technique and persuasive value. Guest speakers 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 with the professor. 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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