OPINION
For more than 15 years, Emma Taylor has used her experience as a trained actor and scriptwriter to improve the public speaking skills of MPs, councillors, CEOs, lecturers and entrepreneurs. Now she is turning her attention to legal professionals, with a brand new workshop for Birmingham Law Society, designed to equip advocates with the skills required to present clear, compelling arguments in court. Tell us more about why you developed a course specifically for legal professionals. Lawyers often come to me looking for one-to-one training to improve their public speaking skills, because while they have plenty of technical knowledge, they lack confidence when speaking in court. Many of these lawyers have a great deal of empathy: they are driven by a desire to do the absolute best for their clients. But they are often more comfortable working ‘behind the scenes’. I wanted to design a course to help them to feel more natural when they are ‘in the spotlight’ too. How is ‘public speaking’ relevant to the unique environment of the courtroom? While you need a lot of training to be a lawyer, you don’t have to be a legal expert to know how to construct a great argument! Knowing what metaphors to use and when to use them; knowing how to enunciate properly; knowing how to use your words to really persuade your audience - these are skills that cut across all disciplines. Success in court is also about more than just being able to write a good speech - it’s about having presence, and being able to adapt and respond to your audience rather than being tied to a script. My background in acting and drama means that I can teach classical acting and vocal techniques alongside more traditional public speaking skills all of which can help develop an effective courtroom presence. What’s the most common issue you see in those who have to speak in court? Almost everyone who comes to me for advice about speaking in court 16 www.birminghamlawsociety.co.uk
COURTROOM DRAMA PUBLIC SPEAKING EXPERT EMMA TAYLOR EXPLAINS HOW BRUSHING UP ON YOUR ACTING SKILLS CAN IMPROVE YOUR ADVOCACY IN THE COURTROOM.
has a problem with nerves. That’s entirely normal! It can be hard to ‘find your voice’ in such a daunting environment. There are also often unusual acoustics in courtrooms, especially in older buildings, which can throw people off when they start speaking and hear their voice echoed back to them. Nerves are easier to manage as you become more experienced and get to know the system and the judges. However, even those who have been advocates for a long time can benefit from re-learning the basics. Many lawyers that I have spoken to about this course have expressed regret that it wasn’t available to them when they
were training - to them, I would say definitely still come along as you will still almost certainly learn something new. Emma’s upcoming training workshops ‘Doing Yourself Justice in Court’ is being held on 4th November 2021 9.30am to 1:00pm and 2:00pm to 5:00pm at No5 Chambers (Fountain Court, 5 Steelhouse Ln, Birmingham B4 6DR). Book your place now via the Events page on the Birmingham Law Society website: www. birminghamlawsociety.co.uk
