A Law School Teacher’s Oral Advocacy Suggestions

Advocacy advice commonly centers around rules. Rules work well for procedure and evidence, but not for litigation skills that depend on individual characteristics and styles. Advocacy is an art, not a science. Just as both Rihanna and Willie Nelson are successful musicians, a courtroom advocate can be successful in innumerable ways. If I offered a list of rules, the first would be Break These Rules. So, I offer suggestions based on my 40 years of litigation and almost that many years teaching.