[blindLaw] Oral Arguments

[Brian Unitt]

Hi Matthew,

I will share some things I have done over the past 40 years, and apologize for the length of this reply. In the end though, what is the least distracting for you is what you should insist on. 

Since I started practicing before computers were accessible, I used a slate and stylus for all my notes. The trick I learned in college and law school was not to use braille paper, but to use notebook paper, or later on, legal pads. That paper isn't as durable, but my experience was that it lasted through exams, and in practice through the conclusion of the case they related to. In the early '00s I had a PacMate from Freedom Scientific and that was great until I wore it out. I experimented with several iPad and Braille display combos but was never comfortable with the reliability of the setup, too many potential failure points. You don't want to be standing in front of the court messing with your technology instead of making your argument. I now have a Focus 40 Blue display and often use the scratchpad function for my outline. I set the righthand rocker to display panning and the left to paragraph, and I separate my main points with two hard returns so I can skip through them by paragraph with left Rocker if I need to change course base on the questioning. But mostly I have gone back to slate and stylus. There's no battery to die and no Bluetooth connection to drop.

To me, the key to an effective presentation is to have most of what you might need to tell the court in your head. Only use your notes for an outline of main points to kkeep you on track, and to reference key quotes (short ones) and citations as needed.

If using your laptop will make you most comfortable and able to most effectively do your job, then you should insist on it. I once had court security tell me I couldn't take my PacMate into the courtroom because of a no electronics policy, and many years before that in the same court they tried to confiscate my stylus. In both cases I told them they were the tools I used to represent my client, and asked them to take it up with the Presiding Justice. Security was overridden both times.

Best of luck to you, oral argument is to me the most enjoyable part of appellate advocacy.

Brian
Brian C. Unitt
Certified Specialist in Appellate Law
By the State Bar of California

Law Office of Brian C. Unitt
6185 Magnolia Ave, PMB 40
Riverside, CA 92506 
P: 951-682-7030
E: brianunitt at holsteinlaw.com

NOTICE:  This communication is intended for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed and may contain attorney/client information that is privileged, confidential and exempt from disclosure under applicable law.  If the reader of this communication is not the intended recipient or the employee or agent responsible for delivering this communication to the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited.  If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by reply email or by telephone and immediately delete this communication and all its attachments.

Confidentiality Disclaimer 
This email is confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual(s) to whom it is addressed. The information contained in this message may be privileged and confidential and protected from disclosure. 
If you are not the author's intended recipient, be advised that you have received this email in error and that any use, dissemination, forwarding, printing, or copying of this email is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error please delete all copies, both electronic and printed, and contact the author immediately

-----Original Message-----
From: BlindLaw <blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Matthew Smith via BlindLaw
Sent: Tuesday, March 14, 2023 6:41 AM
To: blindlaw at nfbnet.org
Cc: Matthew Smith <matthewj.smith1914 at gmail.com>
Subject: [blindLaw] Oral Arguments

Goodmorning,
I am currently preparing to give my first oral argument for legal writing. I am not able to use my laptop during the actual arguments but, I was wondering what alternatives are there to supplementing that use. I would prefer to use an electronic due to not having access the ability of producing braill notes  on campus. I also wanted to know what was an approach to memorizing the arguments while answering questions on the material. During practice I attempted to memorize all of the argument but was unsuccessful. Are there any tips about managing your place in your argument wile answering questions. I thank you in advance your help.

Matthew J. Smith
_______________________________________________
BlindLaw mailing list
BlindLaw at nfbnet.org
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindlaw_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for BlindLaw:
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindlaw_nfbnet.org/brianunitt%40holsteinlaw.com