SEAK Deposition Skills Workshop June 2006

SEAK Deposition Skills Workshop June 2006

Preconference
Advanced Deposition Skills Workshop	Schedule
Four Points by Sheraton Hyannis Resort Hyannis, Massachusetts	Faculty
June 21, 2006	Registration Info
	Hotel and Travel Information
	Registration Form
	PDF of Brochure
Executive Summary Expert witnesses are 15-20 times more likely to have to testify at deposition than at trial. Advanced Deposition Skills for Experts teaches experts how to excel during their depositions. The workshop is presented in an interactive fashion and features numerous demonstrations. This is an advanced course designed for experienced experts who would like to raise their deposition skills to the next level.
Learning Objectives At the completion of this workshop you will be able to: � Understand and counter opposing counsel's strategy and tactics. � Learn how to best prepare for your deposition. � Master special techniques for videotape depositions. � Understand how to achieve your goals at a deposition. � Practice and improve your skills for answering the most difficult deposition questions. � Present truthful and more effective expert deposition testimony.
Faculty: Steven Babitsky, Esq., is the President of SEAK, Inc. He was a personal injury trial attorney for twenty years and is the former managing partner of the firm Kistin, Babitsky, Latimer & Beitman. Mr. Babitsky is a prolific writer on expert witness issues and is the co-author of the texts Cross-Examination: The Comprehensive Guide for Experts, Writing and Defending Your Expert Report: The Step-by-Step Guide with Models, How to Excel During Cross-Examination: Techniques for Experts That Work, The Comprehensive Forensic Services Manual: The Essential Resources for All Experts, 2004 National Guide To Expert Witness Fees and Billing Procedures and How to Excel During Depositions: Techniques for Experts That Work. Attorney Babitsky is the co-developer and trainer for the "Testifying Skills Workshop" seminar, the seminar leader for SEAK's Annual National Expert Witness Conference (now in its 15th year), and the scriptwriter for the videos "The Most Difficult Questions For Experts: With Answers," and "The Expert Deposition: How to Be an Effective and Ethical Expert," "Cross-Examination: How to Be an Effective and Ethical Expert Witness," and "Winning over the Jury: Techniques for Experts That Work." Mr. Babitsky has trained thousands of expert witnesses. Registration Information: The $395 tuition includes continental breakfast, breaks, lunch with faculty, workshop manual, and a unique and practical hands-on learning experience. We expect this workshop to sell out early. To register, please click here.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006

8:30-9:00	Introduction Brief introductory remarks will be followed by an initial demonstration of an expert deposition utilizing a volunteer attendee. Questions and Answers
9:00-9:30	Understanding the Strategies and Goals of Opposing Counsel Faculty will review the goals of opposing counsel at depositions. Attendees will also learn the alternative strategies opposing counsel will utilize at depositions to achieve her goals. Demonstrations will drive key points home. Questions and Answers
9:30-10:15	Preparing for Your Expert Deposition Experienced experts understand the significance of their deposition and how opposing counsel will likely be highly prepared to question them. Faculty will provide a detailed checklist of the specific steps that need to be taken to properly prepare for an expert deposition. Attendees will also learn how to help ensure that retaining counsel thoroughly prepares them for their deposition. Faculty will review the specific items experts need to be prepared to explain at their deposition. Questions and Answers
10:15-10:30	Break and Networking Opportunity
10:30-11:00	Deposition Strategies for Experts Faculty will discuss the alternative strategies experts may follow at deposition. Faculty will explain how the best strategy to follow depends on many factors including the size of the case, type of case, who the attorneys are, and whether or not retaining counsel believes the case is likely to settle before trial. Questions and Answers
11:00-12:00 pm	Understanding and Defeating Counsel's Deposition Tactics: Experts who are aware of, able to recognize, and effectively deal with the myriad of opposing counsel's tactics are highly successful at their depositions. These experts help increase the value of the case and are highly sought after. The faculty will explain, analyze, and review many deposition tactics and will offer specific techniques for defeating each. Demonstrations utilizing volunteer attendees will help illustrate the tactics and defenses. Questions and Answers
12:00-1:00	Lunch (Provided with Faculty)
1:00-1:30	Videotape Depositions - Special Techniques The number of videotape depositions taken are increasingly rapidly. In this segment the faculty will discuss advanced techniques for excelling at your videotape deposition. Attendees will view samples of effective and ineffective videotape deposition testimony. Questions and Answers
1:30-2:45	Advanced Deposition Tactics for Experts The best experts are not only able to effectively respond to opposing counsel's tactics, they are able to use their own tactics to help present truthful and effective testimony. This segment will describe numerous techniques experts can use to make sure that opposing counsel does not unfairly lock them in, does not take their testimony out of context and does not distort the truth. Demonstrations utilizing volunteer attendees will help illustrate many of these techniques. Questions and Answers
2:45-3:00	Break and Networking Opportunity
3:00-4:00	Pulling it all Together: Truthfully and Artfully Answering Trick and Difficult Questions at Deposition In this segment the attendees will be able to practice the skills taught in the course by responding to numerous trick and difficult deposition questions. For each question the faculty and attendees will analyze what tactic opposing counsel is most likely employing, how that tactic can be defeated and various truthful and artful answers to the question. Questions and Answers
4:00-4:15	Attendee Specific Trick & Difficult Questions During this segment attendees will be allowed to submit to the faculty and his or her attendee-peers difficult and trick questions. The faculty and attendees will provide suggestions on truthful and artful ways to answer these questions. Questions and Answers
4:15-4:30	Takeaways and Conclusions Faculty will take any final questions and solicit from the attendees a concise set of "bullet point" takeaways based on what was learned in this workshop. Questions and Answers