Public interest lawyers often spend much of their time in the courtroom. Yet, prosecution, defender, and legal aid offices usually do not have the resources to train their lawyers in trial work. This course seeks to help remedy this deficiency by helping students who plan to do public interest work develop witness interrogation skills.
Students will apply their theoretical grasp of evidence to concrete trial problems involving the direct and cross examination of lay and expert witnesses, the introduction of documentary evidence, and the use of illustrative evidence in California and federal courts. The goal is to train students in the art of examining friendly and hostile witnesses, and in the use of documentary and illustrative evidence.