Tips from the Bench, Via the Chicago IP Litigation Blog

May 2, 2011
Michael Atkins in Civil Procedure

David Donoghue’s got some great litigation tips.

And they come from a great source: judges sitting in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

David’s Chicago IP Litigation Blog — long an STL favorite — just finished a five-part series with insights into the judicial practices and preferences from the five newest judges in his district. In short, it’s what the bench likes and doesn’t like from the lawyers who appear in their courtrooms.

Some highlights:

• Assume the judge has read your papers when arguing;
• If the judge asks a yes or no question during a hearing, “the answer should start with ‘yes,’ ‘no’ or ‘I cannot answer that because….’”
• “Do not casually suggest misconduct; avoid work like ‘fabricated,’ ‘concocted’ or ‘misleading’”; and 
• In summary judgment motions, “omit unnecessary details” and be brief.

The court’s suggestions come from a Federal Bar Association panel David attended. The recurring theme, he said, was civility: “Civility in court. Civility in briefs. Civility in emails.”

This is good stuff. If you want the unabridged version, see his posts from April 1, April 8, April 15, April 22, and April 29.

Nice series. Thanks for sharing!

Article originally appeared on Michael Atkins (http://seattletrademarklawyer.com/).