Comments from Virginia attorneys who attended "Great! Adverse Depositions: Principles and Principal Techniques" and/or "The 25 Credibility Arguments for Deposition and Trial"
"Great! Adverse Depositions: Principles and Principal Techniques"
Superb seminar! Superb speaker! Seminar among the elite in quality and value. My adverse depositions will improve at least 100%.
Charles Rowan, 23-yr atty, 100 adverse depos, Unisys Corp, Alexandria
Dynamic speaker. Technique very good for pinning down witnesses.
Nicholas H. Cobbs, 30-yr atty, 100+ adverse depos, Alexandria
Highly rated seminar. Excellent. Great speaker.
Richard Dezio, 3 adverse depos, Alexandria
Extremely useful seminar. Excellent speaker…lively, engaging and informative. Seminar is as good as any…better than most. Will significantly improve the quality of my adverse depositions.
Geoffrey McNutt, 4-yr atty, 3 adverse depos
Excellent seminar…excellent speaker. Please present other Musante seminars!
Anne W. White, 30-yr atty, 100+ adverse depos, Alexandria
Outstanding seminar…a fresh, entertaining and valuable way of making lawyers think instead of following the cookbook. Musante has a great command of his subject.
Anonymous
Good practical content with excellent real-life examples and critiques. Very good teaching ability, esp. at keeping audience's attention.
Stacey Papp, 3-yr atty, Alexandria
Excellent seminar…very helpful in emphasizing the proper technique. Excellent speaker--very entertaining, speaks clearly, intelligently and without being repetitive or boring. The video clips worked very well--I particularly liked the fact that the clips were something that all can relate to.
Anonymous
Superb seminar--right on the money. Excellent, engaging speaker.
Anonymous
Very useful seminar. Engaging, energetic speaker.
Anonymous, 22-yr atty, 50 adverse depos, Alexandria
What a great seminar…fun, interesting and informative. I'm going to the second seminar ... another whole day!
Anonymous, Alexandria
Helpful seminar…more useful than most. Great speaker…more captivating than most speakers.
Anonymous, Alexandria
Excellent seminar…excellent speaker. Top 10.
Anonymous, 20-yr atty, 50 adverse depos, Alexandria
Certainly the best seminar, if not THE best. Will definitely improve quality of my adverse depos.
Anonymous, 13-yr atty, 100 adverse depos, Alexandria
Helpful and thought-provoking on potential for deposition uses and also meaningful suggestions on techniques to implement. Seminar very different from others…faster-paced, substantially unique.
Anonymous, Alexandria
Very useful in thinking about depositions where settlement is the objective/likely result. Exceptionally good use of Powerpoints. Seminar better than any other presentation I have attended on this topic.
Anonymous, 7 adverse depos, Alexandria
Excellent teacher…kept class well engaged with speaking style, computer graphics and media clips.
Anonymous, Alexandria
Quite useful seminar…excellent speaker. Gives me a good, logical platform upon which to build the impeachment "snippets" for use at trial or settlement.
Mark Byrum, 16-yr atty, 30 adverse depos, Alexandria
Organized, creative, thorough, good examples, enjoyable allusions. This seminar went by fast! Seminar has the most specific and useful advice.
Anonymous, Alexandria
Thought-provoking seminar…many practical tools. Musante very good although oddly defensive and confrontational. He's both arrogantly confident and insecure. This seminar is among the most useful and thought-provoking I've attended. I would recommend this seminar to my partners/associates.
Anonymous, 22-yr atty, 250 adverse depos, Alexandria
Terrific seminar. Great speaker. Best seminar I've attended.
Anonymous, 16-yr atty, lots & lots of adverse depos
Excellent seminar…very few tangents…good examples. Musante very good…keeps things simple, repeats basic principles so they're embedded in my head. This seminar definitely kept my attention better than others.
Jennifer Weiss, 10-yr atty, 5 adverse depos, Alexandria
Seminar superior to others I have taken…actually kept my interest.
Paul C. Miller, 12-yr atty, 25+ adverse depos
Excellent seminar … speaker very good … kept my interest.
Ann Killalea, 20-yr atty, 100s of adverse depos, Alexandria
Excellent seminar. Everything about the seminar is practical, providing useful techniques and the "science" of cross-examination. Excellent speaker…he understandably conveyed a lot of info in a short time. Good use of examples.
David Goldberg, 11-yr atty, 200 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Highly practical seminar. Musante really gave us the "how to" for an effective and "killer" depositions. Musante very engaging…he presented info in a clear and entertaining manner, also providing easy-to-remember summaries by the material.
Liz Fineberg, 6-yr atty, 6-10 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Useful seminar…good speaker. He's humorous…prevents whiplash injuries from nodding off. Will help me to be more alert to narrowing and fixing the adverse witness's testimony.
Tom Swiers, 12-yr atty, 75+ adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Very helpful seminar…food for thought in preparing for my next depo. Musante is articulate…continued to hold my attention throughout the day.
Alred F. Arquilla, 20-yr atty, 10-15 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Excellent seminar…would love to spend a week on this subject. Not a wasted minute. Excellent speaker…engaging, humorous. Great examples…memorable. Convinced me of the wisdom of loading questions and use of impeachment evidence during the depo; the point that depo is the trial is well taken.
Geoffrey T. Hervey, 18-yr atty, 150 adverse depos, Bregman, Berbert, Schwartz & Gilday, Tysons Corner
I am extremely excited about what I've learned here … its practical application will be immediate. Musante is fabulous. He presents an extraordinary amount of information in an entertaining and effective way. This course and Posner & Dodd's course are the best courses I have ever taken. Have Musante back! I'll recommend this course to my colleagues.
Paula DeMuth, 17-yr atty, 15 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Very helpful seminar on practical points. Musante very understandable…keeps attention of audience well. Definitely more practical than other like seminars.
Alan Bowden, 6-yr atty, 15 adverse depos, Bean, Kinney & Korman, Tysons Corner
Useful and stimulating seminar. Musante was born [to teach].
Anonymous, Alexandria
Very useful seminar…it's nice to get a fresh viewpoint on the subject.
Anonymous, 14-yr atty, 12 adverse depos, Alexandria
A valuable checklist, plan of attack, review of the elements required for a successful deposition of an adverse witness. Excellent speaker, engaging and informative.
Anonymous, 28-yr atty, 1000 adverse depos
Extremely helpful seminar. Great speaker. Seminar much more informative than others.
Matt Banks, 14-yr atty, Hamilton, Altman, Canale & Dillon, Alexandria
One of the best seminars I've attended. Seminar full of useful, practical advice on how to maximize the impact and effectiveness of adverse witness depos. Musante very effective, engaging, and appropriately entertaining.
Ann-Kelley Kemper, 9-yr atty, 8 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Seminar better than most seminars by providing information that makes sense in practice, worthwhile information that I can practically apply.
Anonymous, 6-yr atty, 100+ adverse depos, Tysons Corner
This seminar is the highest quality to date. Very effective use of multimedia coupled with lecture. Excellent speaker.
Robert A. Swick, 7-yr atty, 40 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Terrific seminar…excellent speaker. I would like to take Musante's other seminar, if offered.
Anonymous, Tysons Corner
Extremely helpful. Excellent use of media and graphics. Seminar much better than the McElheney course. I will preview and craft questions and arguments much more thoroughly.
Anonymous, 33-yr atty, 150+ adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Seminar better than most. Excellent speaker. The use of well known cases made material more interesting and entertaining.
Anonymous, 3-yr atty, 25 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Seminar highly useful…punctured myths with sharp logic worthy of a Jesuit. Enjoyable speaker, current and frenetic. Seminar in top 10%.
Bill Hassan, 26-yr atty, 1000 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Good seminar, but fast. Excellent speaker. This seminar will spur me on to take the time and energy and money to prepare, prepare, prepare.
Anonymous, 18-yr atty, 12 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Excellent seminar…provides the teaching tools to maximize chances of winning the case. Superb speaker. Seminar better than the vast majority.
William H. Henry, 16-yr atty, 50 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
I have never heard this approach to depositions before, but it is logical and I will apply it in my practice. Outstanding speaker.
Scarlett Grose, 4-yr atty, Tysons Corner
Top-notch practical techniques and logical reasons for those techniques. Excellent speaker who moves seminar along at a good pace. His characterizations of scenarios help cement the concepts in the brain. My adverse depos will improve 1000 times. Great techniques…I hope to "master" them!
Amy M. Jones-Baskaran, 4-yr atty, 2 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Better than any other I've attended for the last two years. Well worth coming. OUTSTANDING and very engaging speaker. Will do more than improve my adverse depos ... will also help in dealing with arguing policies in government.
Anonymous, Tysons Corner
Very helpful seminar. Musante presents material in an entertaining manner. Seminar more engaging than most.
Anonymous, 20-yr atty, 500+ adverse depos, Chandler, Franklin & O'Brien, Tysons Corner
Very useful seminar. I once litigated against a California lawyer whose deposition technique I greatly admired…I now recognize what he was doing! Musante very good…articulate, entertaining, and for the most part, able to express his ideas clearly.
Anonymous, 20-yr atty, 100s of adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Excellent seminar…excellent speaker. Seminar well above average.
Daniel Cantu, 5-yr atty, 15 adverse depos, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, Tysons Corner
Very good seminar…good examples…eye-opening explanation of seldom-covered topic. Better than the majority of other like seminars.
David Saikel, 4-yr atty, Tysons Corner
Very useful info, presented in an interesting way. Especially liked Musante's use of current events and pop culture references to make his points. Musante was great…he kept me interested and engaged the entire course. His Powerpoints were very impressive and sometimes downright hilarious. All of Musante's ideas and techniques make perfect sense.
Sarah Minchener, 2-yr atty, 10 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Highly practical seminar. Excellent speaker…love the use of actual videos and specific examples of how to do things correctly. This seminar is much more engaging and interesting than others. I will put much more time and effort into mapping out the theory of the case before taking an adverse deposition.
Karen J. Harwood, 18-yr atty, 30 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Good seminar…Musante is interesting, challenging, thought-provoking. Excellent use of practical examples. Helpful techniques and themes to follow.
Alex Tomaszczuk, 20-yr atty, 40 adverse depos, Shaw Pittman, Tysons Corner
Very good seminar…outstanding speaker. Seminar better than most others I've attended.
Anonymous, 24-yr atty, 100+ adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Excellent seminar…excellent speaker. Seminar better than 95% of others.
John McCahill, Rothwell, Figg, Ernst & Manbeck, Tysons Corner
He's great! Very informative seminar…much better than usual.
Shirley F. Keisler, 14-yr atty, 35 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Good content; very informative. Musante maintained attention throughout. Provides a more focused, disciplined approach to handling a deposition.
Alexander X. Jackins, 5-yr atty, 20 adverse depos, Seyfarth Shaw, Tysons Corner
Filled with practical suggestions.
Dennis C. Kacoyanis, 25-yr atty, 10 adverse depos, Tysons Corner
Better than most I've been to ... good teacher, good program.
William Tunner, 10-yr atty, 200 adverse depos, Thompson & McMullan, Richmond
Content interesting, clear and easily applicable to my current practice. Musante is excellent; made an effort, both through the written materials and his presentation, to keep the course interesting. This will change how I draft my questions.
Tenley Seli, 8-yr atty, 50+ adverse depos, Richmond
Far better than other full-day litigation seminars: interesting, informative and holds your attention. Will significantly improve the quality of my adverse depositions.
Kristie Haynes, 7-yr atty, Richmond
Musante made a number of interesting points and challenged conventional wisdom effectively.
Anonymous, 25 adverse depos, Richmond
Very energetic and entertaining instructor, able to convey important principles with supportive examples. This will hopefully drastically improve my awareness of the issues at depos.
Charles Hamiller, 1.5-yr atty, 2 adverse depos, Richmond
Solid practical content; very good instructor.
Steve Cannella, 23-yr atty, 100s of adverse depos, Richmond
The best out of the 7 all-day seminars that I have been to. Useful, concrete and coherent. Musante is clear, memorable and well-paced.
John Rasmussen, 9-yr atty, 15 adverse depos, Richmond
One of the top seminars I've attended. Excellent practical content. Enjoyed the mixd media aspects of the presentation. Has given me energy and tools to do in-depth self-evaluation before and after each deposition.
Anonymous, 8-yr atty, 20+ adverse depos, Richmond
Excellent practical content. I fully intend to study and implement Musante's advice/rules. He is an excellent instructor; very thorough, informative and interesting.
Cathie Howard, 18-yr atty, 100s of adverse depos, Richmond
Superior seminar. Excellent practical content; presentation very well illustrated. Musante is outstanding; holds interest.
John F. Pyle, 17-yr atty, 100s of adverse depos, Richmond
Excellent program mixed with good trial tactic approach. Musante is a very active and engaging speaker.
T. Cabell, Richmond
Very thought-provoking. I look forward to trying these new theories. Completely changed my way of taking depositions.
T. Hughes, 11-yr atty, 75 adverse depos, Richmond
Excellent. Gives new rules for litigators to follow. Will give my depositions more structure; hits home their importance.
John D. Ayers, 1-yr atty, 2 adverse depos, Richmond
"The 25 Credibility Arguments"
Outstanding seminar…a fresh, entertaining and valuable way of making lawyers think instead of following the cookbook. Musante has a great command of his subject.
Warner F. Young, 21-yr atty, Fairfax
Excellent seminar…very helpful in emphasizing the proper technique. Excellent speaker--very entertaining, speaks clearly, intelligently and without being repetitive or boring. The video clips worked very well--I particularly liked the fact that the clips were something that all can relate to.
William Schladt, 23-yr atty, 300 adverse depos, Fairfax
Superb seminar--right on the money. Excellent, engaging speaker.
Christopher Bruno, 21-yr atty, numerous adverse depos, Fairfax
A very practical seminar. Musante is charismatic, animated and well-prepared--all strong teaching qualities. Excellent video clips. This seminar puts a theoretical framework in place to gauge my depositions and cross-examinations.
Anonymous, 6-yr atty, 2 adverse depos, Fairfax
Very good seminar…to the point. Musante seems to have a great knowledge about depos. A helpful and entertaining seminar. Musante is very good…spirited, organized. The seminar will help me become more focused in questioning. Best CLE in two years.
Anonymous, 2-yr atty, 10 adverse depos, Fairfax
Excellent seminar…excellent speaker.
Anne W. White, 30-yr atty, 50-100 adverse depos, Fairfax
The seminar was helpful in a broad sense. Excellent speaker…good use of demonstrative aids, good command of the material, and lively delivery. The video clips were quite good and effective.
L.K. Behan, 22-yr atty, "too many" adverse depos, Fairfax
It will be difficult to digest and master all of the technical aspects of this seminar, but I'm sure I will be able to apply quite a bit of this information. Musante is very organized and well spoken…very entertaining. This seminar has convinced me that I have to prepare a lot more prior to the depositions. I never fully appreciated the importance of the depo.
Dan Brittenham, 2-yr atty, 3 adverse depos, Fairfax
I liked that the seminar focused on the logic and systems for depo rather than a nuts and bolts approach. Excellent video clips for use as teaching points.
Tim Purnell, 15-yr atty, 20 adverse depos, Fairfax
Very interesting approach to deposition taking which has caused me to rethink my approach. Musante is entertaining and lively. The video clips make the seminar and are invaluable for entertainment as well as for teaching purposes.
Anonymous, 8-yr atty, 500 adverse depos, Fairfax
Excellent seminar…excellent speaker. The credibility arguments are principles of psychology, logic and other sciences ably and cleverly organized as a course of lasting truths. The video clips are excellent in illuminating the teaching points. Musante has done a great job in assembling these clips for the course. Musante has helped organize my thinking about the psychology of trial, etc. which can aid me in several areas.
MacDougal Rice, 47-yr atty, Fairfax
Very good distillation of the objectives of an adverse deposition and techniques for each objective. Also provocative and well argued rationale for attacking credibility in deposition. Excellent speaker--well prepared, thorough, entertaining and focused. This seminar will help me by insuring that I focus on the credibility issues better and exploit them/prepare for them at trial.
Anonymous, 25-yr atty, 50 adverse depos, Fairfax
Enjoyed hearing Musante's views on how to contest the "I don’t know/I don’t remember" answers so commonly given…you have given me much information to consider. Musante's teaching ability is wonderful…great mix of video, examples and insight. Videos were extremely helpful and poignant.
Michael Sherlin, 13-yr atty, 75 adverse depos, Fairfax
An intriguing, insightful and challenging seminar. An engaging, interesting and high energy speaker.
Christopher Harris, 3-yr atty, Fairfax
Good "big picture" analysis. Musante is very enthusiastic, knowledgeable. His abstract examples should facilitate deeper awareness of deponent's deceptions.
Adam Macaluso, 8-yr atty, Fairfax
This seminar provides helpful insight about how to evaluate and overcome common credibility arguments that attorneys encounter in depositions. Effective speaker.
Anonymous, 8-yr atty, 11 adverse depos, Fairfax
Great seminar! Best CLE I have ever attended. Musante kept my attention. Fantastic videos…a tremendous amount of effort.
Roger Mackey, 30-yr atty, 100s of adverse depos, Fairfax
A great refresher and presentation of important litigation tools. Musante establishes most effective way to focus on adverse depositions. He's excellent…wonderful combination of experience and entertaining teaching ability. His use of videos is an interesting and entertaining way to illustrate his teaching points.
John Dale, 20-yr atty, 100 adverse depos, Alexandria
Excellent seminar…one of the best CLE programs I have attended in terms of usefulness and content. Excellent speaker…clear, concise, interactive, and interesting.
James Asselstine, Alexandria
Cases turn on facts and arguments. The facts exposed by reconstructing a deponent lead to winning arguments. This presentation is well designed and executed. An entertaining application of logic to topical political issues involving evasions of politicians similar to evasions encountered in depositions.
Brian McCormack, 32-yr atty, 150-200 adverse depos, Alexandria
Highly rated seminar. Excellent speaker…interesting and compelling.
Mike Beasley, 25-yr atty, 40 adverse depos, Alexandria
Great seminar…great and engaging speaker. Seminar gives me new ideas and helps me to reorganize tactics already used.
Elise Balkin, 4-yr atty, 20 adverse depos, Alexandria
This seminar is very important to trial lawyers. An excellent and entertaining speaker.
Donald A. Clover, 29-yr atty, 800 adverse depos, Alexandria
The practical content of this seminar is well thought out, explained, and substantial. Musante's ability to teach the topic of taking an adverse depo is excellent. He understands the purpose of depositions. The video clips kept the topics interesting and therefore aided in learning. This seminar helps me give labels to tactics that I should use when taking depositions.
Ondray T. Harris, 7-yr atty, 20 adverse depos, Richmond
Very practical and organized seminar. Much thought is given in how to present in a memorable way. Very valuable and carefully selected videos.
John Rasmussen,10-yr atty, 30 adverse depos, Richmond
Excellent seminar…excellent speaker. Probably best lecturer I have seen in a CLE.
Pat O'Donnell, 14-yr atty, 60 adverse depos, Richmond
This seminar made me consider/view depositions in a different light. I will be more thoughtful, detailed and aggressive from now on. Excellent speaker.
Tamara Tucker, 8-yr atty, 50 adverse depos, Richmond
There is ample practical content as reflected in the multiple examples of real trials and talk shows. Great teaching tools. Musante keeps the pace moving fast, which keep the lecture format from getting stale and boring. Musante is precise at language and he incorporates great historical and literary references. Video clips really taught me how to listen carefully and critically, which is the key to effective cross-examination.