It's About Them, Not You

Too often, lawyers approach oral argument with a misguided mindset. Unlike jury summations, high-school debate, or even the recent presidential impeachment hearings, oral argument to a judge or panel of judges isn’t really supposed to be an argument at all. It should be a conversation—and one for the benefit of the judges, not the advocates—to address the judges’ concerns, thereby demonstrating that your position holds up under scrutiny.