bwahahaha!

[Zyle]

Essay is complete! The fact that it is the biggest bag of shite i've ever written and I haven't even proof read it yet matter not, it is THERE on PAPER!

Moot is also "prepared" for, though if I actually have to stand up and do it I'll die. (please let her pick my partner, please please please!) Beale, I really don't know how you manage to get up in a real court and do lawyery stuff, I can't even do it in a tutorial group... I'm always amazed by lawyers. I should probably get over it, wanting to be one and all.

Now I'm going to bed. night all!!!

[Arif-ul Haq]

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[Zyle]

wow, same predicament as me Arif... good luck with yours!!! What subject is it on? Mine's unfair contract terms and exemption clauses... yuck :(

[Arif-ul Haq]

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[bealeblues]

congrats on the having shite on paper zyle... that is really the biggest step of all....

as for getting up in court, it is nothing more than smoke and mirrors... honestly, once you do it once or twice, and then talk to judges behind the scenes and out of the courtroom, you are no longer intimidated and you simply have a conversation-- nothing more...

oh yeah, it helps to get in good with the law clerks b/c the judges follow their suggestions 90% of the time....

[Arif-ul Haq]

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[bealeblues]

zyle and arif, i've been there and i've had the anxiety that you're having right now....

i'll tell you a story (now's the time to bail out)

i had a trial advocacy class my last year of law school. In this class, we had to prepare examination and cross examination questions, go through a trial (complete with evidentiary objections and rulings, etc), and deliver a closing argument to about 50 of our peers, all in a courtroom setting with lawyers for judges.

the requirement for closing argument was to make your argument a 'theme'-- aka tell a story. trick was, no notes, no outline, nothing. straight from the hip. another caveat-- you could not divulge your 'theme' to anyone or discuss your arguments b/c you were being graded based upon your peers' review of your effectiveness.

time goes on, a few people give their closings. after this one guy, i am next. guess what-- the bastard and i had thought of exactly the same theme. i was going on in about 3 minutes and i am hearing my closing being delivered by someone else. complete panic mode. no, i didn't prepare an alternate theme. btw, this was a huge part of our overall grade. oh, did i mention that this was being videotaped?

so, completely panicstricken, i get up there to do my theme. and from nowhere, i started talking, just talking to the idiots in my class that i didn't like. and the theme basically wrote itself-- and while i my adrenaline was absolutely overwhelming, it was like someone else was doing the talking for me and i was just along for the ride.

bottom line is, if you have prepared for your oral arguments-- i.e. you know the facts back and forth, you know your law, then the oral argument comes naturally after a while. you will not be able, in practice, to use outlines, follow a script, b/c once the judges even think you are doing that, they will intentionally ask questions and trip you up- and if you have relied upon your script, you are completely thrown off and cannot recover.

moral of the story: preparation, preparation, preparation, not of what you are going to say, but of what you are talking about. and once you know what you are talking about, the confidence comes and it flows naturally. a little adrenaline and tension is good (i still get that every time) b/c it keeps you on your toes, but overall, you know that you can field any question.

good luck (but i'm sure that both of you will do just fine)

[Zyle]

well, I won! It wasn't as bad as I feared, the fact that it was an informal classroom setting helped. I still wouldn't be able to do it in a court. I was the defendant in a couple of mock trials a couple of years ago, but that's a bit different :p

That's an encouraging story beale, I can't imagine being able to do that no matter how much I prepared. The judge didn't manage to trip me up though, but then it was only an informal thing and they were trying to help us rather than make it real. Thanks for the advice, it really is helpful :)

[Arif-ul Haq]

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