Kurt Zaner · Sarah McEahern

Lawyers hate legal writing. And for good reason - its terribly boring. So stop writing like a lawyer and tell a damn story. This CLE will teach how to write in a way that moves the reader to want to rule in your favor. You can use this technique in every brief you write (from discovery disputes to substantive motions) maximizing the chances you will be able to introduce the evidence you need at trial. Without winning the briefing, you may never be able to present the case you want at trial. I learned this after working a federal law clerk for a year right after law school and literally falling asleep at my desk, only to wake up and see the Judge staring at me.

As exemplars, I will use two cases in which a winning brief on spoliation and a winning punitive damage brief led to two eight figure verdicts in CRPS electrocution cases I tried with Sarah McEahern; both had past meds under 300K. I will break down the cases and the briefs and show you how to use the writing techniques I have developed over the years and what they look like in action. I will also show how the evidence I developed in the wining briefs was dramatically introduced at trial. The presentation, like my writing, will entertain you like Maximus in Africa. If you like Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones, you will be even more entertained.