School: The Art of Persuasion

There's a competition to make the Trial Team here at the law school, and I'm currently in the final round, fighting for one of the available slots (the final round is tomorrow). We must prepare and deliver an opening statement, a direct examination, and a cross examination, all in a mock trial setting. Unlike other law school competitions like Moot Court or Law Review, it's not just about content or the strength of your legal arguments; it's also about how convincingly you can present information to a jury.

I was a bit shocked, for example, when they told me to dumb it down. Apparently, words like "genesis" are too complicated for a jury. Most jurors also stop paying attention to a speaker after about 30 seconds, so it's critically important to lay out everything in those first moments of a trial. Trial lawyers seem to expend a lot of effort determining how to say something, rather than what to say.