Litigation & Appeals

Trial: What to Do When…

Credits Available
Credit Status Total
Alaska CLE Reciprocity 6 Total
Alabama CLE Approved 6 Total
Arkansas CLE Approved 6 Total
Arizona CLE Approved 6 Total
California CLE Approved 6 Total
Colorado CLE Approved 7 Total
Connecticut CLE Approved 6 Total
Delaware CLE Approved 6 Total
Florida CLE Approved 7 Total
Georgia CLE Approved 6 Total
Hawaii CLE Approved 6 Total
Iowa CLE Approved 6 Total
Idaho CLE Approved 6 Total
Illinois CLE Approved 6 Total
Indiana CLE Approved 6 Total
Kansas CLE Approved 7 Total
Kentucky CLE Approved 6 Total
Louisiana CLE Approved 6 Total
Maine CLE Approved 6 Total
Minnesota CLE Approved 6 Total
Missouri CLE Approved 6 Total
Northern Mariana Islands CLE Approved 6 Total
Mississippi CLE Approved 6 Total
Montana CLE Approved 6 Total
North Carolina CLE Approved 6 Total
North Dakota CLE Approved 6 Total
Nebraska CLE Approved 6 Total
New Hampshire CLE Approved 6 Total
New Jersey CLE Approved 7.2 Total
New Mexico CLE Approved 6 Total
Nevada CLE Approved 6 Total
New York CLE Approved 7 Total
Ohio CLE Approved 6 Total
Oklahoma CLE Approved 7 Total
Oregon CLE Approved 6 Total
Pennsylvania CLE Approved 6 Total
Rhode Island CLE Upon Request 6 Total
South Carolina CLE Approved 6 Total
Tennessee CLE Approved 6 Total
Texas CLE Approved 6 Total
Utah CLE Approved 6 Total
Virginia CLE Approved 6 Total
Vermont CLE Approved 6 Total
Washington CLE Approved 6 Total
Wisconsin CLE Approved 7 Total
West Virginia CLE Approved 7.2 Total
Wyoming CLE Approved 6 Total
OnDemand
5 hours 52 minutes
R. Aron Benjamin
Kevin Madden
Peter Ostermiller
Christopher Doak
With R. Aron Benjamin from Stein Sperling Bennett De Jong Driscoll P.C. + 3 others
Recorded November 07, 2025
Product ID 101176

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Overview

A Trial Troubleshooting Guide

Even the best-prepared trial lawyers get blindsided. Whether it's a rogue witness, a missed objection, or a judge who derails your strategy - what matters is how you respond in real time. This course delivers practical tools for staying sharp and strategic when things don't go as planned. Learn how to pivot with finesse, manage unexpected courtroom chaos, and turn trial curveballs into opportunities - register today!

  • Adapt your trial plan on the fly when key witnesses don't appear.
  • Regain control when a witness goes off-script or becomes uncooperative.
  • Utilize demonstrative evidence persuasively - and without drawing objections.
  • Develop techniques for effectively responding to objections from opposing counsel in real time.
  • Manage imposed time constraints, tech failures, and logistical hiccups.
  • Adjust your trial strategy when opposing counsel shifts the narrative.
  • Reinforce ethical boundaries when dealing with perjury or unrealistic client demands.

Abbreviated Agenda

  1. Dealing With Witness Wildcards
  2. Managing Evidentiary Curveballs on the Fly
  3. Direct and Cross Examination Gone Sideways
  4. Using Your Trial Notebook as a Troubleshooting Tool
  5. Ethics: When Risk Outweighs Any Possible Outcome
  6. Objections in Action: Real Time Tips
  7. Revisiting Your Strategy: Adapting to Shifts in the Case
  8. Courtroom Dynamics: Judges, Opposing Counsel, and the Unexpected

Related Topics

Product ID 101176

Credit Details

Credits Available
Credit Status Total
Alaska CLE Reciprocity 6 Total
Alabama CLE Approved 6 Total
Arkansas CLE Approved 6 Total
Arizona CLE Approved 6 Total
California CLE Approved 6 Total
Colorado CLE Approved 7 Total
Connecticut CLE Approved 6 Total
Delaware CLE Approved 6 Total
Florida CLE Approved 7 Total
Georgia CLE Approved 6 Total
Hawaii CLE Approved 6 Total
Iowa CLE Approved 6 Total
Idaho CLE Approved 6 Total
Illinois CLE Approved 6 Total
Indiana CLE Approved 6 Total
Kansas CLE Approved 7 Total
Kentucky CLE Approved 6 Total
Louisiana CLE Approved 6 Total
Maine CLE Approved 6 Total
Minnesota CLE Approved 6 Total
Missouri CLE Approved 6 Total
Northern Mariana Islands CLE Approved 6 Total
Mississippi CLE Approved 6 Total
Montana CLE Approved 6 Total
North Carolina CLE Approved 6 Total
North Dakota CLE Approved 6 Total
Nebraska CLE Approved 6 Total
New Hampshire CLE Approved 6 Total
New Jersey CLE Approved 7.2 Total
New Mexico CLE Approved 6 Total
Nevada CLE Approved 6 Total
New York CLE Approved 7 Total
Ohio CLE Approved 6 Total
Oklahoma CLE Approved 7 Total
Oregon CLE Approved 6 Total
Pennsylvania CLE Approved 6 Total
Rhode Island CLE Upon Request 6 Total
South Carolina CLE Approved 6 Total
Tennessee CLE Approved 6 Total
Texas CLE Approved 6 Total
Utah CLE Approved 6 Total
Virginia CLE Approved 6 Total
Vermont CLE Approved 6 Total
Washington CLE Approved 6 Total
Wisconsin CLE Approved 7 Total
West Virginia CLE Approved 7.2 Total
Wyoming CLE Approved 6 Total
Select Jurisdiction
CLE

Agenda

All times are shown in

  1. Dealing With Witness Wildcards

    1. Preparing for and Responding to Panicked, Forgetful, or Silent Witnesses
    2. Handling Nervous or Unpredictable Witnesses Pre-Testimony
    3. Managing Hostile or Emotionally Charged Witnesses
    4. No-Show Witnesses: Real-Time Solutions
    5. What if My Witness Gets Impeached?
    6. Recovering From Witness Credibility Challenges

  2. Managing Evidentiary Curveballs on the Fly

    1. What to Do When Key Evidence is Excluded
    2. Offers of Proof: Ready-to-Go Language to Preserve Appellate Rights
    3. Authentication Pitfalls: Quick Fixes for Admission Issues
    4. Effectively Using Demonstrative Evidence: Dos and Don'ts
    5. Navigating Disorganized Exhibits and Labeling Errors in Real Time
    6. Handling Surprise Evidence or Witnesses

  3. Direct and Cross Examination Gone Sideways

    1. When Witnesses Go Off Script: Dos and Don'ts
    2. Tips for Redirecting Confused or Off-Topic Testimony
    3. Navigating Unexpected or Damaging Answers
    4. Cross-Exam Chaos: Handling Combativeness and Evasiveness
    5. Regaining and Maintaining Control

  4. Using Your Trial Notebook as a Troubleshooting Tool

  5. Ethics: When Risk Outweighs Any Possible Outcome

    1. Ethical Dangers of Overpromising
    2. Responding to Unethical Client Request: How to Draw the Line
    3. Maintaining Civility and Professionalism When the Pressure is On
    4. What to Do if Your Client Commits Perjury
    5. Recognizing and Resolving Conflicts of Interest

  6. Objections in Action: Real Time Tips

    1. Timing and Strategy: Making Objections That Stick
    2. What to Do if You Miss Timely Objections
    3. Handling Overruled and Sustained Objections
    4. Live Response Tactics: Countering Objections From Opposing Counsel

  7. Revisiting Your Strategy: Adapting to Shifts in the Case

    1. When Opposing Counsel's Opening Redefines the Narrative
    2. What to Do if Your Key Themes Aren't Landing
    3. Leveraging Factual Concessions Made in Trial
    4. Navigating Settlement Offers During Trial Proceedings

  8. Courtroom Dynamics: Judges, Opposing Counsel, and the Unexpected

    1. Adjusting to Time Cuts, Delays, and Judicial Schedule Shifts
    2. Tech Trouble in the Courtroom: Fast Fixes Under Pressure
    3. Handling Pointed Questions From the Judge
    4. Strategizing Around Unexpected Rulings
    5. Calling Out Misconduct: Responding to Improper Tactics by Opposing Counsel
    6. Addressing Opposing Counsel and Juror Misconduct

Who Should Attend

This trial-centered course is designed for attorneys. Paralegals may also benefit.

Speakers

R. Aron Benjamin
R. Aron
Benjamin
Stein Sperling Bennett De Jong Driscoll P.C.
Kevin M Madden
Kevin M.
Madden
Law Offices of Kevin Michael Madden, P.L.L.C.
Peter L Ostermiller
Peter L.
Ostermiller
Peter L. Ostermiller, Attorney at Law
Christopher G Doak
Christopher G.
Doak
Woods Aitken LLP
Speaker bio
R. Aron Benjamin

R. Aron Benjamin

Stein Sperling Bennett De Jong Driscoll P.C.
R. Aron Benjamin

is of senior counsel Stein Sperling Bennett De Jong Driscoll P.C. In addition to personal injury work, he handles criminal law matters including theft, assault, drug possession, and traffic offenses. Prior to joining Stein Sperling, Mr. Benjamin worked as an assistant state's attorney in Carroll County, Maryland, where he served as an advocacy and investigation center prosecutor and coordinated the Carroll County Drug Treatment Court. He earned his B.A. degree from University of Colorado and his J.D. degree from The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law.

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Speaker bio
Kevin M Madden

Kevin M. Madden

Law Offices of Kevin Michael Madden, P.L.L.C.
Kevin Madden

is the founding member of the Law Offices of Kevin Michael Madden, P.L.L.C., where he practices in the areas of civil trial practice, commercial litigation, business litigation, construction law and employment law. He is admitted to practice in Texas and before the U.S. District Court, Southern and Eastern districts of Texas. Mr. Madden was the articles editor for the Houston Journal of International Law. He was the judicial intern to the Honorable David Hittner, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas; and a law clerk to the Honorable Joseph James "Tad" Halbach, Jr., 333rd District Court, Harris County, Texas. Mr. Madden is a member of the Houston Bar Association, State Bar of Texas, Texas Young Lawyers Association, Texas Trial Lawyers Association, Association of Trial Lawyers of America and Trial Lawyers for Public Justice. He earned his B.A. degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder, his B.S. degree from the University of Houston and his J.D. degree from the University of Houston Law Center.

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Speaker bio
Peter L Ostermiller

Peter L. Ostermiller

Peter L. Ostermiller, Attorney at Law
Peter Ostermiller

is a sole practitioner concentrating in legal ethics and professional responsibility matters. In 1980 he obtained his license to practice law in Kentucky. His legal ethics and professional responsibility law practice began in the mid-1980s and, since the mid-1990s has been his practice concentration. He represents attorneys in disciplinary and reinstatement proceedings, judges in judicial ethics matters, and bar exam applicants. Mr. Ostermiller has also represented parties in attorney's fee dispute proceedings, and attorneys in legal proceedings in which sanctions have been sought against the attorney. He has represented parties in attorney disqualification proceedings and counseled lawyers and law firms in their respective rights, responsibilities and duties to other attorneys and their clients. He also serves as an expert witness at the state and federal level regarding legal ethics and professional responsibility matters. Mr. Ostermiller is a member of the Kentucky Bar Association, Louisville Bar Association and Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers. Mr. Ostermiller earned his B.A. and J.D. degrees from the University of Louisville.

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Speaker bio
Christopher G Doak

Christopher G. Doak

Woods Aitken LLP
Christopher Doak

is an attorney at Woods Aitken LLP. He assists corporate clients at all phases of litigation. He also assists corporate clients with contract reviews and employment matters. Mr. Doak has previous experience representing regional and multinational corporations in a wide range of high-exposure cases concerning large-scale commercial projects involving construction defect claims and breach of contract allegations to personal injury lawsuits involving wrongful death. He earned his J.D. degree, cum laude, from Syracuse University College of Law. During law school, Mr. Doak served as a judicial extern for the Honorable Thomas James McAvoy of the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York. He was also the recipient of numerous awards, including CALI Excellence for the Future Awards in three classes: Trial Advocacy, U.S. Arbitration and Practice, and Legal Writing. Mr. Doak earned his B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from Hobart College, where he majored in economics.

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