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The Narrative Gym for Law: Introducing the ABT Framework for Persuasive Advocacy Paperback – January 4, 2022
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The ABT Framework (And, But, Therefore) is a revelation. It brings the power of simplicity to a world that is glutted with too much information. The business community has already discovered the ABT and is applying it to sales, marketing and branding. Now it's time for lawyers to tap into the power of the words that capture the three fundamental forces of narrative: Agreement, Contradiction, Consequence.
- Print length107 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication dateJanuary 4, 2022
- Dimensions5.06 x 0.25 x 7.81 inches
- ISBN-13979-8784837936
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- Park Howell, Host, "The Business of Story" Podcast
About the Author
DOUG PASSON is a 25-year litigation attorney recognized by the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times as a pioneer for his work using moving pictures to persuade in the legal process. He is an award-winning filmmaker, an internationally known speaker and consultant and has authored multiple articles on the topic of crafting compelling case narratives. His law practice is based in Scottsdale, AZ and includes a state-of-the-art video production studio.
Product details
- ASIN : B09PMH122H
- Publisher : Independently published (January 4, 2022)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 107 pages
- ISBN-13 : 979-8784837936
- Item Weight : 4.2 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.06 x 0.25 x 7.81 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #2,149,425 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #80 in Communications Law (Books)
- #148 in Media & the Law
- Customer Reviews:
About the authors
Doug Passon is a lawyer, filmmaker, writer, and musician. He has been practicing criminal defense for twenty-five years (www.dougpassonlaw.com) He is also an award-winning documentary filmmaker who combines his passion for filmmaking and storytelling with his practice of law by producing short documentaries for use as mitigation at sentencing and post-conviction proceedings.
He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of sentencing advocacy, and described by the Wall Street Journal as a pioneer in the emerging field of sentencing mitigation videos. His groundbreaking work in this area was the subject of an episode of his all-time favorite T.V. show, The Simpsons (S30, Ep. 15). Passon routinely consults with and teaches legal professionals across the country how to effectively integrate this highly persuasive form of advocacy into their practice, as well as how to build a powerful case narrative in the absence of video. He has given over 100 lectures in the U.S. and abroad on this and other topics.
Passon has published numerous articles on sentencing and criminal justice issues, including, Mitigation and the Movies: Using Moving Pictures To Put Your Client In The Best Light at Sentencing, THE DEFENDER, Spring 2007, reprinted in THE LIBERTY LEGEND, Vol. III, Issue 5, Summer 2007; Using Mitigation Videos to Build the Bridge of Empathy at Sentencing, Cultural Issues in Criminal Defense (3rd ed.)(Linda Friedman Ramirez ed., 2010); Using Mitigation Videos to Build the Bridge of Empathy at Sentencing (Revised & & Updated), THE CHAMPION, June 2014; Winning at Sentencing with Theories, Themes, & the Creative Demonstration of Truth, THE CHAMPION, March 2017; and The “3Rs” of Sentencing Storytelling, THE CHAMPION, April 2021.
He created and authors the blog, Story for Lawyers (www.dougpassonlaw.com) and has produced short and feature documentary films outside of the law.
Passon was born and raised in the Midwest. He completed a dual degree at Indiana University in Criminal Justice and Speech Communications in 1992, and graduated from Washington University School of Law in 1996. He currently lives in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Randy Olson earned his Ph.D. at Harvard University and achieved tenure at the University of New Hampshire before resigning and moving to Hollywood, obtaining an M.F.A. from the University of Southern California School of Cinema, and embarking on a second career as a filmmaker. Since film school he has written and directed the critically acclaimed films Flock of Dodos: The Evolution-Intelligent Design Circus (Tribeca, '06, Showtime) and Sizzle: A Global Warming Comedy (Outfest, '08), and co-founded The Shifting Baselines Ocean Media Project, a partnership between scientists and Hollywood to communicate the crisis facing our oceans.
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- Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2021I likely wouldn’t have read a “law” book had a friend not recommended it to me, but this stuff is gold. I’m in public relations and nothing is more important than telling a good story. The authors teach you how to quickly connect to your story’s core and then help shape its direction in a more powerful way. It’s a short read that’s also fun in its own narrative. I’m also a writer/screenwriter and I can already see how this is going to help me up my writing. This is cool!
- Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2022This book illuminates what we all know...that a good story is at the core of every human relationship. As a member of the clergy (and not a lawyer) the message of this book rings true for me as well. It is a concise and well written guide book for anyone hoping to persuade others to listen. The ABT strategy applies to every moment of communication.
I highly recommend this short guide for anyone who wants to be heard.
- Reviewed in the United States on January 23, 2023Every lawyer knows that storytelling is the key to persuasion, and persuasion is what we get paid to do. But few lawyers have the time or the patience to study storytelling the way Doug Passon has, and now you don't have to. In this little book, Doug distills the best of his teachings to the simplest narrative formula (And, But, and Therefore), and explains how and why it works. And it does. When you apply these lessons, your thinking and writing will improve immediately and you'll have more fun doing the work. Thanks Doug!
- Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2022For the last three decades I have all been the leader of a successful criminal defense law firm, and our success has largely been due to our ability to effectively communicate. Along the way, the entire Barone Defense Team has learned to how to become better communicators. We’ve learned how to be more interesting, and therefore, how to tell our client’s story more effectively and persuasively to the court and to the jury. And this has led to even greater success. This means that if we can learn how to become even better communicators, to kick it up another notch, then we can all become even more successful lawyers. But, if you're like me, you know that it’s hard to find the time necessary to improve your communication skills and even harder to figure out on what resource to devote what little time you have. Therefore, I was thrilled to find this book! It’s a quick, easy and enjoyable read, and I guarantee that once you’ve read it you will never communicate the same way. That all of your communications will be more interesting and therefore more compelling and persuasive, and that your track record for success will accelerate and improve. I know this because I’ve read the book and I’m using it now with the book’s co-author to craft and improve our sentencing presentation on a Federal case where our client is potentially facing a life sentence. Because of this experience, I’ve never been more enthusiastic about a communication method! I am so confident that you will agree that I am challenging you to prove me wrong. Buy a copy and read it over the course of an evening. Then, if you disagree with me, use the books method to formulate your argument explaining why, and post it here, as your review. My guess is, instead, you’ll read it and thereby be compelled to start using the ABT method. And after than, you'll post your own five star review!
- Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2022Trial lawyers don't have much time - and this book is made for us. It gets straight to the point and provides easy to understand guidance on how to be the best (and most persuasive) storyteller in the courtroom. It also happens to be well-written and a joy to read! Yes, you should buy this book and read it before your next court appearance.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 14, 2022Many lawyers have a huge blind spot in their education (and to generalize more broadly, in their personality) -- the ability to tell a story. We're good at analyzing issues in a logical way, but too often we don't use the full arsenal of a good storyteller to make a case and an argument more persuasive. This book has all of the hallmarks of a great read for a lawyer: it's concise, uses specific and relatable examples, and provides the necessary tools to further hone one's skills. Highly highly recommend.
- Reviewed in the United States on December 17, 2021THE OPENING SENTENCE for Doug Passon and Randy Olson’s The Narrative Gym For Law is: “Everyone needs a narrative.”
I’m a 35-year criminal attorney. I have read this book twice, and after reconstructing my closing argument using the ABT Method for a federal criminal case that will be tried again as a result of a hung jury, I am convinced that every defense attorney who walks into a courtroom with the intent of persuading a jury to free his client, needs this book. Not only needs it, but needs to follow the prescribed exercises that make the And, But and Therefore regimen the only true way to construct a narrative that will compel a desired result.
Intrinsically, we all have some of that And, But and Therefore circulating in our heads, but (and I use that word so carefully now) the ABT Method and its exercises crystalize what you are trying to get across and give you the best narrative possible – a narrative that a jury or judge can take to heart and ultimately adopt.
In this age of eschewing hard (or soft) covered books for the ease and uncluttered use of a computer, this is one book that should be in every trial lawyer’s arsenal, and in every trial lawyer’s briefcase or back pocket. I know it will be in mine.