Workshops
Helping each person find their individual style and voice to speak effectively and persuasively — whether in trial, arbitration, hearings, or presentations.
Persuasive Communication & Advocacy
60–90 min +Helping each person find his/her individual style and voice to speak effectively and persuasively whether in case-related matters (trial, arbitration, hearings) or in presentations. Can be combined with other course offerings.
Explore delivery techniques and strategies for being a persuasive and believable presenter, including how to structure presentations, how to make ideas and arguments more memorable, and how to maintain the audience's focus. Guidance on how a speaker can control his/her body — breathing, hand gestures, voice variations, and how to stand.
Active Listening
60–90 min +Effective communication begins with intentional listening. This targeted training equips professionals and supervisors who need to influence others with the skills to foster trust, clarity, and collaboration through active listening — an essential leadership competency in today's dynamic workplace.
Examine and practice research-based methods on how to listen with purpose and build an environment of trust and credibility.
Giving and Receiving Feedback
60–90 min +Master the art of delivering actionable, respectful feedback — and receiving it with openness and resilience. Build a culture of continuous improvement by turning feedback into a tool for growth, not judgment. Whether you're leading teams, mentoring colleagues, or navigating complex stakeholder relationships, this training equips you with practical strategies to elevate your communication, strengthen collaboration, and lead with authenticity.
Learn techniques and methods to deliver constructive feedback, which is specific and actionable, that motivates improvement and creates an environment and culture in which feedback is collaborative and received with openness.
A competency development course designed to improve participants' knowledge and skills for core areas of trial, equally applicable to other areas of advocacy. The curriculum can be fully customized.
Comprehensive Trial Advocacy Program
3–5 days +The trial advocacy curriculum includes presentations and workshops on each of the following topics, among others, and can be fully customized:
Opening Statements
How to structure and deliver an effective opening statement, selectively presenting a factual overview without improper argument.
Direct Examination
Learning specific techniques to structure and deliver a clear, memorable, and credible direct examination.
Cross-Examination
How to plan and strategize when and how to cross-examine a witness, asking proper leading questions, to obtain favorable testimony and/or neutralize unfavorable evidence. Impeachment — when and how to impeach a witness and categories of impeachment — can also be part of this segment or offered as a separate workshop.
Closing Arguments
How to structure and deliver a persuasive closing argument, arguing how the facts do/do not support the elements necessary for a verdict.
Exhibits, Evidentiary Foundations & Illustrative Aids
Laying the proper foundation depending on the type of exhibits to be introduced, as well as the use of specific types of exhibits, including summary charts and demonstrative/illustrative aids.
Witness Preparation
Techniques on how to prepare yourself to interview the witness and prepare the witness to testify.
Making and Meeting Objections
Examining how, when, and why to make objections and how to respond effectively.
Jury Selection
Exploring the mechanics and rules for jury selection and how to effectively use the voir dire process for your case.
Evidence
Covering the common evidentiary rules that arise at trial and planning accordingly.
The course uses a "describe, demonstrate, and do" model in which the instructors provide presentations and demonstrations of the various skills, then the participants practice the skills in workshops (which can be recorded) and then receive feedback and critiques from instructors.
Taking and Defending Depositions
1–2 days +A competency development course that can be integrated within the Trial Advocacy program or offered as a stand-alone course. Designed to prepare participants in techniques to prepare a witness for a deposition; how to conduct the deposition to gather important information, obtain admissions, and lock in witnesses; how to effectively use documents and exhibits during the deposition; and how to make and respond to objections, which includes dealing with difficult witnesses and counsel.
This deposition training uses a "describe, demonstrate, and do" model in which the instructors provide presentations and demonstrations of the various skills, then the participants practice the skills in workshops (which can be recorded) and then receive feedback and critiques from instructors.
Train-the-Trainer Workshop
2.5 days +Sharpen skills in designing and delivering effective, engaging instruction by incorporating the science of adult learning and instruction, as well as feedback from instructors and colleagues, into your training.
Design objectives, activities, content, and structure using a "backward designed" model. Develop supporting materials using principles of multimedia learning and design. Deliver an introduction for your presentation and facilitate an engagement exercise. For each segment, you will receive specific, helpful feedback using a model designed for training.
Working Group / Conference Planning Workshop
1 day or less +Need to plan a training or conference but not sure where to start or how to make it engaging? This workshop will walk you through our "backward designed" training development model to create a training or conference framework and agenda that incorporates academic and practical research on adult learning.
Develop a complete program/conference agenda that includes clear, audience-focused objectives, engaging activities and discussions, and relevant content/topic areas.
Creating Effective PowerPoint Slides
60–90 min +We've all been in presentations or meetings where the speaker monotonously reads from a poorly designed set of PowerPoint slides overflowing with text — a frustrating and often ineffective means of communicating information or influencing audiences.
Based on research about how to use multimedia most effectively, learn how to provide critical information without overloading or confusing your audience. Learn and incorporate ways to make your presentations more effective by discussing common mistakes with PowerPoint slides and how to avoid them when presenting.
Creating Effective Visuals for Presentations and Trials
60–90 min +Audiences have shorter attention spans and expect more visual stimulation. Communicating clearly and effectively, especially when presenting new or complicated information, requires thoughtful use of words and graphics to maintain audience attention and help listeners understand and remember information.
Learn five research-based ways to use visuals in your presentations and trials to support audience attention, understanding, motivation, and decision-making.
Implementing the techniques and concepts taught in the various offerings, we provide individualized consultation, feedback, and critiques on how to improve presentations to enhance their effectiveness and persuasive impact — including on the structure, delivery, and use of visuals in the presentation.