Who are your lawyer gurus?
In a post at Georgia Criminal Appellate Law Blog, lawyer Scott Key cautions those who would take cross-examination inspiration from what’s seen on television dramas.
“All the cross-examination gurus would tell you to forget that you ever saw a TV lawyer doing a cross-examination,” Key wrote. “Don’t go for drama. Don’t go for the gotcha. A spectacular cross-examination might seem utterly undramatic at the time. Good crosses are planned crosses.”
Key says he takes lessons from Cross-Examination: Science and Techniques by Roger Dodd and Larry Pozner (Key says it’s “like the Bible”) as well as from MacCarthy on Cross-Examination.
Key first became a fan of Terence MacCarthy in law school after he heard a cassette of a talk MacCarthy gave. Later, MacCarthy was on the bench when Key’s team advanced to the final round of a mock trial competition: “And I got to do some Terry McCarthy stuff in front of Terry McCarthy. It was the courtroom equivalent of my son having LeBron James as a referee in a little-league basketball game.”
So this week, we’d like to ask you: Who are your lawyer gurus? What books do you swear by?
Answer in the comments.
Read the answers to last week’s question: Is your primary work computer a desktop or a laptop?
Featured answer:
Posted by Chien noir: “Laptop with full keyboard and mouse and second monitor. I have a second laptop and a Surface for use when I am away from the office. The Surface is perfect for court.”
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