Stephen Easton is a trial lawyer and award-winning teacher who has excelled in both the courtroom and the classroom. His energy and focused approach translate into practical and entertaining CLE presentations.

With four trials in the past few years, Attorney Easton has secured successful jury verdicts in all four seats available to trial attorneys: prosecution, criminal defense, plaintiff’s attorney, and civil defense.

Until his retirement in late 2024, Attorney Easton served as President of Dickinson State University. Prior to that, he served as U.S. Attorney for the District of North Dakota. He was also a partner at the Bismarck firm Pearce & Durick, where he focused on product liability and insurance defense.

During his four-year tenure as dean of the University of Wyoming College of Law, Attorney Easton taught trial skills while continuing to try cases and refine his litigation practice. He previously served as a professor of law at the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law.

Attorney Easton received the Richard S. Jacobson Award for Excellence in Teaching Trial Advocacy from the Pound Civil Justice Institute and the Warren E. Burger Prize for scholarship on legal excellence, civility, ethics, and professionalism from the American Inns of Court.

Additionally, Attorney Easton is the author of three essential guidebooks for attorneys: Opposing Adverse Experts (ABA), How to Win Jury Trials: Building Credibility with Judges and Jurors (ALI-CLE), and Problems, Cases & Materials in Professional Responsibility (Thomson-West). Attorney Easton co-authored Trial Techniques and Trials with Thomas Mauet. He has been published in both the legal and popular press, including The Federal Lawyer, The Practical Litigator, Stanford Law Review, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today. He received his B.A. from Dickinson State University and his JD from Stanford Law School.

8:30 AM Preliminary Thoughts on Cross-Examination

• Terminology
• Three types of cross-examination
• Required elements for successful cross-examination

Evidence Law Regarding Impeaching

• The law of Impeachment – what you can ask about in cross
• Competence factors
• Special modes of discrediting
• Reputation for veracity

9:30 AM Break

9:45 AM Younger’s Ten Commandments of Cross-Examination

• Be brief – don’t just tell them – show them!
• Ask short questions using plain words – one fact per question
• Ask leading questions-write questions that must be answered yes
• Ask only questions to which you already know the answer and be ready to “prove up”
• Don’t let the witness merely repeat direct testimony – set the trap before springing it
• Don’t let the witness explain – secure your right to control the witness

10:45 AM Break

11:00 AM Countering Your Opponent’s Cross: Rebuilding Your Witness’s Credibility After It Is Attacked

• Listen to the witness’s answer – record important testimony in the witness’s own words
• Don’t quarrel with the witness – do not improve the witness’s prior statement
• Avoid the “one question too many” – stay well clear of the door
• Save argument for summation – resist temptation to wrap your cross into a neat package

12:00 PM Lunch (on your own)

1:00 PM Countering Your Opponent’s Cross: Rebuilding Your Witness’s Credibility After It Is Attacked

Cashing in the Gains You Made in Your Cross-Examinations: Final Arguments About Witness Credibility

• Arguing Fact Witness Credibility
• Be tactful
• Be simple
• Don’t try to fool them

Arguing Expert Witness Credibility

• Should You Argue Substance?
• Credentials
• Common Sense
• The Witness’s Demeanor

2:30 PM Conclusion

• Ask more focused, effective questions that support your theory of the case
• Reduce the risk of damaging testimony by making more deliberate strategic choices
• Anticipate credibility challenges and strengthen your ability to protect your witness’s testimony and reliability on the stand
• Boost your performance in depositions, hearings, mediations, and trials
• Sharpen your ability to spot weak points in opposing testimony
• Develop a repeatable method for structuring cross-examinations you can apply across different cases and settings

• Criminal defense lawyers
• Prosecutors/District attorneys
• Personal injury lawyers
• Litigators
• Plaintiff’s attorneys
• Family lawyers
• Any attorneys conducting cross-examinations

Book Bonus!

Wisconsin Trial Practice
Save 15% on Wisconsin Trial Practice.* It covers the full spectrum of IP law in Wisconsin, offering practical tools, substantive law, checklists, and sample language to help you safeguard your clients’ ideas and assets. Use discount code CA3952 when you order online or by calling (800) 728-7788.

*Discount applies to both print and digital Books Unbound® editions of this title and cannot be applied to previous purchases. Offer valid through 12/31/27. For Books UnBound users, discount may be applied to purchase of individual Books UnBound title only and may not be used on the purchase of libraries. Discount cannot be combined with any other offers.