Hey Reader,

A judge recently called us out for using a dirty word in court.

Storytelling.

Okay, technically, he was talking to the attorney.

The attorney had been referring to people by their first names instead of calling them “the plaintiff” or “Mr. So-and-So.”

The judge had his opinion as to why…

“I understand why you’re using first names. It’s storytelling. But we’re not doing that.”

First: It’s just how we’d been referring to them leading up to court.

Second: That’s not storytelling.

At least, not what WE mean when we talk about storytelling.
It’s not a euphemism for making things more dramatic or manipulating the facts.

Here’s what good storytelling really is…

It’s making the facts make sense.
Putting them in an order people can follow.
Highlighting the details that matter.
Scrapping the ones that get in the way.

When we’re working on a case, we’re not looking for ways to make the facts sound more dramatic.

We’re looking for ways to make them easier to follow, picture, and understand.

And sometimes, the storytelling is surprisingly simple.

It might be the order you put the facts in.

Or it might be giving a fact enough context to understand what it actually meant.

And because apparently “storytelling” needs a little PR help around the courthouse, we put together a cheat sheet with more ways to do exactly that.

Context. Pattern. Point of view. Contrast. Specificity. Cause and effect. And a few others.

NO-DRAMA STORYTELLING
12 ways to make the facts easier to follow, understand, and remember.

​[Download the No-Drama Storytelling Cheat Sheet HERE]​

Your storytelling (sorry, not sorry, Your Honor) trial consultants,