The Illinois Trial Practice WeblogTips and techniques for trial lawyers, appearing for the plaintiff or defenseReminder: New Illinois Jury Instructions Can Be Found Online- May 29, 2008 The Illinois Courts website contains "recent instructions, not yet contained in the Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions bound volumes, drafted by the Supreme Court Committee on Jury Instructions in Civil Cases." You'll find the new instructions at Recent Civil Jury Instructions,...http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2008/05/reminder-new-il.html Resources for Backing Up Online- May 27, 2008 From PC World, an article of interest to solos: "Mobile Computing: Online Backup Services." Most traditional backup methods copy your computer files onto some kind of media, be it an external hard drive, a CD or DVD, or a USB...http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2008/05/resources-for-b.html A Must-Not-Forget Tip for Dealing with Experts- May 22, 2008 Here's some good advice about dealing with experts, posted by Ron Miller at the Trial Lawyer Resource Center: Do not send a letter, email or even leave a telephone message to an expert (or fact witness) that you would not...http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2008/05/a-never-forget.html Bryan Garner Discusses Writing with Justice Scalia- May 20, 2008 The ABA Journal has emailed me to say that in addition to the Scalia-Garner freebie I mentioned in a post last week, there's also a free audio file in which Scalia and Garner discuss writing and oral argument. You can...http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2008/05/bryan-garner-di.html An Expert-Related Practice Tip from Deposition Checklists and Strategies- May 15, 2008 This is just one of the many practice tips that you'll find liberally scattered throughout the eight chapters of my book, Deposition Checklists and Strategies (James Publishing): 4:255 Practice Tip: What the Expert Did Not Do Remember to ask the...http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2008/05/a-practice-tip.html A Don't-Miss Freebie from the ABA- May 13, 2008 The ABA Journal has excerpted "Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges," by Justice Antonin Scalia and Bryan A. Garner. The excerpt can be found here; a link to the book itself is here. Meanwhile, there is an interesting...http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2008/05/a-dont-miss-fre.html Class Actions, Post-CAFA- May 8, 2008 This month's Trial magazine has news from a March conference at the Benjamin Cardozo School of Law called "Justice and the Role of Class Actions." A quick summary-- Class actions are "evolving, not dying." If the Class Action Fairness Act...http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2008/05/class-actions-p.html Motion Hearings: Listening to the Judge- May 6, 2008 Some judges don't say very much at motion hearings. When they do, however, make sure you're listening to them. Last year, I saw a judge interrupt a lawyer with a comment. As often happens at a motion hearing, the judge...http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2008/05/motion-hearings.html Six Tips for Improving Your Direct Examinations- May 1, 2008 Here is a basic blueprint for putting together a direct examination. The tips are basic, but worth remembering-- Find out what information you want to elicit. The rest of these tips deal with technique; this tip deals with substance. You're...http://www.illinoistrialpractice.com/2008/05/five-steps-to-i.html |