“Nestor, soft in speech, eloquent speaker of the pilios, from whose mouth the words flowed sweeter than honey.” Homero
The theory teaches us that in a legal system such as Spanish, in whose judicial processes the principle of orality prevails, the knowledge, learning and putting into practice of the essential norms of oratory is essential for the lawyer.
But, the question that seems fundamental to us is to know the benefits that oratory brings us in practice, especially when this question is usually resolved with a simple (although insufficient) reference to the ability to persuade and convince that oratory grants. And we say insufficient, because as we will see, the advantages and benefits that knowledge of oratory rules gives us lawyers go beyond its own persuasive purpose.
In this post, as a decalogue, we are going to examine the benefits that forensic oratory brings us, which we must not forget, is the genre of oratory practiced in procedural acts (hearings and hearings) before the Courts and Tribunals of Justice, to through which the parties, or more frequently their lawyers, summarize before the judge or magistrates the facts, evidence and legal grounds that support their thesis and their request for a ruling favorable to the interests of the party (Arturo Majada ).
So let’s go with the benefits of public speaking:
1º.- From a general perspective, oratory, through its norms and rules, will be for the lawyer a powerful auxiliary so that the Court accepts his ideas and resolves the controversy.
2º.- Likewise, continuing in the general perspective, through oratory, the lawyer will be able to diminish or reduce the value of the opposing arguments.
3º.- The lawyer, when preparing his arguments and defending against their refutation, will develop strategic thinking, which will be very useful in his professional practice, even when he does not intervene in court.
4th.- Being continuously alert and prepared to refute arguments, challenges or any other question, oratory will favor your mental and intellectual agility, which will be shown not only in the courtroom, but during the preparation of the trial. Focused attention is therefore inherent to the speaker.
5th.- Public oratory allows the lawyer to be a great communicator, and this through a clearer, direct and natural exposition that facilitates and enhances the necessary communication between the lawyer and the Judge. But this ease of communication is not limited to the forensic field, but exceeds it and develops in other professional and personal fields.
6.- The security provided by mastery of the oratory rules, inherent to the mastery of the subject matter, fosters the capacity of improvisation and the lawyer’s reflexes, which will help him to react in unforeseen situations that usually occur in judicial acts with ingenuity.
7º.- Mastering oratory techniques provides the lawyer with security that will help him to overcome fear and usual stage fright before and during his interventions in the room and thus be able to act with the poise of someone prepared to convince through use of the word.
8º.- Public speaking makes the lawyer more organized, since it requires order, structure and a lot of discipline when preparing our interventions (oral report, interrogations, etc.) and, of course, during them.
9º.- Public speaking will allow us to access vast and deep knowledge of other disciplines, since lawyers deal with matters that are not limited to the knowledge of legal science, but must be applied to real life situations that affect everyone the orders of human existence (psychology, communication techniques, verbal and non-verbal language, grammar, general culture, etc.).
10º.- And of course, a good public speaking preparation will favor the security and confidence of the lawyer in himself, thereby increasing his professional self-esteem, very positive to enjoy successes and face failures.
Strategic thinking, mental agility, attention, communication, persuasion, reaction capacity, security, organization, self-esteem: a luxury.
Ultimately, the lawyer must strive to know the rules of public speaking and its strategy, thereby seeking to train continuously and permanently, which will undoubtedly lead to the lawyer not only being more effective in defending his clients. Instead, you will contribute to your own professional and personal development.
(This post was published on January 30, 2014 on legaltoday.com https://www.legaltoday.com/opinion/blogs/gestion-del-despacho-blogs/blog-manual-interno-de-gestion/los-diez-beneficios-que-aporta-la-oratoria-a-los-abogados-2014-01-30/ )
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