We strongly believe in the value of participating in the process of training other lawyers in trial and litigation skills, both in-house and with firms. We are both National Institute of Trial Advocacy instructors, as well as team leaders in the San Francisco Lawyers Club Inn of Court. Both organizations espouse the philosophy that improving the skills of other counsel will benefit both the bar and our mutual clientele. Better training means a clearer understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of a case, understanding which helps counsel to more quickly separate the cases that should settle from those where a trial is required. In addition, team teaching at NITA exposes us to the best practices of other nationally-selected trial practitioners.

As NITA instructors and members of the San Francisco Lawyers Club Inn of Court we have, over the last five years, taught the following courses on a regular basis:

• Deposition Skills - 3 days, San Francisco
• Regional Trial Practice Program - 10 days, San Francisco
• National Trial Practice Program - 10 days, Boulder, Colorado
• Masters of Trial Practice - 6 days, Broomfield, Colorado
• Courtroom Graphics Using Corel Persuasion (tm) & Microsoft PowerPoint (tm) – 1 day, San Antonio, Texas

In addition, The Inns of Court program requires participants to design and present monthly programs illustrating various aspects of litigation and trial practice to the other Inn members. As a team leader and Program Chair, Mr. Sommers has created and presented the following programs:

• Road Warrior – Trying a Case Off Your Laptop
• Voir Dire – Winning the Case at Jury Selection
• Opening Argument – the Limits of the Possible (Also presented to the California Bar Association Annual Meeting)
• Provisional Relief – Injunctions after Theft of Trade Secrets and Customer Lists
• Technology Behind the Courtroom
• Designing and Presenting Trial Graphics
• The First Amendment – Why Can You Say Crusade But I Can’t Say Jihad?
• Schoolroom Issues – Yarmulke O.K., Burka No?

We can build variations of these programs to add to your in-house or firm training programs upon request.