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Blogs and Ebooks by Michael J. DeBlis III
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Direct Examination Is Your Star Witness: How to Make Testimony Come Alive in the Courtroom
Direct examination is where trials are truly won, not by showcasing the lawyer, but by making the witness and their story compelling, credible, and easy for the jury to follow.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
1 min read
Direct Examination Is Your Star Witness: How to Make Testimony Come Alive in the Courtroom
Most trial lawyers obsess over cross-examination. It’s flashy. It’s confrontational. It wins headlines.
But trials are rarely won on cross.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
3 min read
Your Most Powerful Trial Tool Isn’t What You Say—It’s How You Say It
Trial attorneys spend countless hours refining what to say in an opening statement—facts, themes, structure. But jurors don’t experience your case on paper. They experience it through your voice.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
3 min read
From Accused to Understood: Using the Hero’s Journey to Win the Story at Trial
Trial lawyers are trained to master facts, evidence, and legal standards. But jurors don’t decide cases based on information alone—they decide based on meaning. And meaning is almost always delivered through story.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
4 min read
From Instinct to Influence
The moment we perceive danger, tension surges into the neck and the shoulders lift toward the ears. The body contracts around the throat. It happens instantly, before thought ever enters the equation.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
2 min read
The Five Beats That Win Verdicts: Advanced Storytelling Techniques for Trial Attorneys
Trial lawyers love facts.
Jurors love stories.
And the verdict is rendered by jurors—not lawyers.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
4 min read
“Turn Off the Radio”: Why a 1959 Letter Still Speaks to Trial Lawyers in 2026
On December 14, 1959, C. S. Lewis wrote a short letter to a schoolgirl in America who had asked for advice on writing. His eight simple rules were practical, unsentimental, and timeless.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
3 min read
The Laws of Motion in the Courtroom: Using Physical Storytelling to Persuade Juries
Trial lawyers are storytellers first and technicians second. Jurors do not experience a trial as a stack of briefs or a checklist of elements—they experience it as movement: moments of tension and release, advance and retreat, imbalance and resolution.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
8 min read
Silent Persuasion: How Trial Lawyers Can Use Hand Gestures to Influence Juries (Without Saying a Word)
Jurors do not just listen to lawyers—they watch them. Long before a jury consciously evaluates your argument, their brains are already making credibility judgments based on movement, posture, and gesture.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
4 min read
Justice on the Move: Trial Advocacy Lessons from The Lincoln Lawyer
Quick Series Primer (For the Uninitiated)
The Lincoln Lawyer (Netflix) follows Los Angeles criminal defense attorney Mickey Haller, who famously runs his law practice out of the backseat of his Lincoln Continental.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
4 min read
When Words Become Action: The Physical Power of Speech in the Courtroom
In the courtroom, speech is never merely verbal—it is physical, psychological, and decisional.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
2 min read
Sentencing Joe Goldberg: Mitigation When the Monster Is Human
Premise: Assume Joe Goldberg—the obsessive, lethal protagonist of You—has been charged with all known killings, convicted after trial, and now stands before the court for sentencing.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
7 min read
Acting for Lawyers: Connecting to the Jury & Finding Justice Through Dramatic Technique
In Acting for Lawyers, trial attorney and trained actor Michael DeBlis III, Esq. reveals how the core tools of professional actors—
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
2 min read
You Can’t Handle the Truth—But You Can Cross-Examine It: What Hollywood Courtroom Showdowns Still Teach Trial Lawyers
Trial lawyers love courtroom dramas for the same reason jurors do: conflict, control, and revelation.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
6 min read
Listening as Advocacy: How Trial Attorneys Can Use Different Types of Listening in the Courtroom
Trial lawyers are trained extensively in speaking—opening statements, examinations, objections, and closing arguments. Far less attention is paid to listening.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
4 min read
Cross-Examination in Action: How Listening Changes the Next Question
Below are practical examples showing how each type of listening directly shapes the very next cross-examination question. These are moments where disciplined listening—not scripted questions—creates leverage.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
2 min read
Making Powerful Sentencing Arguments: A Defense Attorney’s Guide
Sentencing is often the most consequential phase of a criminal case. Long after questions of guilt have been resolved—by plea or verdict—the sentencing hearing determines how much of your client’s life, liberty, and future will be taken by the State.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
5 min read
When Words Become Action: The Physical Power of Speech in the Courtroom
In the courtroom, speech is never just words—it is action.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
4 min read
How Trial Attorneys Can Use the 3 Modes and the 6 Revelations to Win in Court
This is the sequel to, “When Words Become Action: The Physical Power of Speech in the Courtroom.”
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
4 min read
How Trial Attorneys Can Use Hermogenes’ Seven Styles to Win Cases
Hermogenes’ Seven Styles describe distinct energetic qualities of speech. In the courtroom, these become strategic tools for shaping juror perception, guiding emotion, and controlling meaning.
Michael J. DeBlis III, Esq.
4 min read
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