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“Is Leigh Johnson the Trial Consultant you need? Her clients say YES …”
‘Building The Case’ is a journey into the heart of what it means to be a trial lawyer. Leigh E. Johnson teaches us that to truly hold our audience, we must first listen deeply—not just to the facts, but to the human story behind them. This book masterfully uses psychodrama to explore how understanding your own story can empower you to effectively tell others’. It’s a crucial resource for any lawyer who seeks to transform their advocacy into a powerful narrative of justice and hope.
From a Master Psychodramatist and Pioneer in Trial Advocacy
Leigh E. Johnson’s ‘Building The Case’ masterfully combines trial lawyering with the transformative power of psychodrama and experiential methods. By integrating the Story Spine framework, this book shows how to turn dry facts into emotionally resonant narratives that connect with jurors on a human level. A must-have resource for trial lawyers and anyone committed to the art of impactful storytelling.
From the Creator of Online Action Methods-Tele’Drama
Leigh Johnson has written what I consider to be an essential book for all attorneys. As we have sadly learned from recent political debates, facts matter very little. Facts are boring, facts are confusing, facts are made up, etc.… But what Leigh points out is that a person who can tell a good story can sway jurors and judges, facts or no facts. So it is essential to learn how to tell a good story, and Leigh Johnson explains how to do that that very effectively in this book. A must read, I think.
From an Emmy Award Winning Film Director
Leigh’s book is a masterful work that would likely open up the emotions of any reader. Leigh is able to walk you through using the story spine from her own experiences as a human being and a lawyer. It is integrated into a cohesive narrative yet is also full of immediately effective tools. For a trial lawyer, her book led me to feel, her book not only made me cry but led me to feel, immediately, like using the suggestions in the book to work on my cases. I wanted to stop reading the book and do the exercises; they were so clear and compelling, and I immediately knew they would make my work better, more meaningful, and more effective. This book will be a must-have for any trial lawyer or anybody facing any sort of life conflict be they a spouse, parent, child, colleague, or teammate. This book will change lives and storytelling forever.
From a Dedicated Public Defender
This isn’t just a book—it’s an invitation to rethink how you communicate. “Building the Case” turns every courtroom argument, every client’s struggle, and every personal experience into a story worth telling. The chapter on psychodrama is a revelation—it gave me tools to bring depth and emotion to narratives in ways I’d never considered. And “Juror as Hero”? Pure genius. It’s not just about winning cases; it’s about connecting, understanding, and ultimately transforming how we see justice. This book will inspire you to find the story in every moment.
From a Seasoned Criminal Defense Attorney
Leigh brilliantly constructed a method of creating narratives that permit the client’s story to resonate with all audiences in a courtroom. Her brilliance is that she digs deep into her own experiences and powerfully shares with humility her past triumphs and victories to unravel the journey of her expertise. It is this transparency that brings the reader/student to experience the lessons learned and now taught through a compellingly simple structure. The lawyer who embarks on the path of this method, forever committed to learning, and relearning the method that when ultimately mastered become second nature. The bonus is the individual evolves along with the mastery of the craft. Leigh does the superior job of simplifying and explaining the power of storytelling in a courtroom.
From a Guantanamo Bay Attorney, Jury Consultant, and Educator
This book is a revelation for anyone who needs to tell stories that matter. The Story Spine framework is simple yet profound, offering a roadmap to connect emotionally and logically with any audience. The chapters on psychodrama and inanimate objects brought storytelling to life in ways I never imagined. A must-read for lawyers and storytellers of all kinds.
From a Master Trial Lawyer & Teacher of Trial Skills
Building The Case is a tour de force for anyone who crafts narratives, whether in the courtroom or the broader realm of storytelling. Leigh’s discussion of personal story spines and psychodrama is a standout highlight. These spines and psychodramatic scenes—focused on personal moments of struggle, resilience, and triumph—offer a compelling framework for organizing narratives. Leigh empathetically encourages readers to strip away pretenses and embrace vulnerability, reminding us that the truest stories are those living with all their messy, beautiful humanity intact.
Seizing the reader’s trust, Leigh refreshingly shows hers first with anecdotes and exercises that inspire readers to dig deeper into their own experiences and harness them for storytelling that connects on a soul-deep level. Leigh does not just “tell” the reader to do it. Instead, she lovingly takes her reader’s hand and walks with them while “showing” them how. This work is a true victory in training advocacy and storytelling, something that has gone missing in the legal realm. – Thank you Leigh.
From a Seasoned Civil Litigator
Leigh Johnson is masterful at teaching the art of storytelling in her book. Building the Case is a fascinating read, not only for lawyers, but also for those wanting to create deeper personal relationships. Leigh’s expertise in this unique field shines through as she teaches the concepts and techniques for generating stories that engage your audience. This exceptional book is compelling, beautifully written, and skillfully taught. A must read for anyone looking to strengthen relationships using the art of empathy through storytelling. I highly recommend Building the Case to enhance your communication skills and improve your connection with others.
From A Fellow Author & Everyday Person
As I read, ‘Building The Case,’ I was thinking about people I would love to send this book to so they could read it. So many of us, lawyers, social workers, mitigation specialists, paralegals, and others speak for others. We all need to know how to tell a story. The young lawyer and the old one, who lost the point of representing people, need to read this book. I will champion your book once it is done. The writing is wonderful. It is efficient and communicates images I can see and feel. I liked the samples and the directions given, so anyone can deploy new ways to learn the stories we are destined to tell. I can envision using ‘Building The Case’ with college and graduate students too.
From a World Class Mitigation Specialist & Trial Lawyer
Down through the evolution of human beings, stories have been the key to our survival, providing us with information needed for our survival, shared around campfires with other humans who were also making their way across hostile landscapes. Storytelling became the very essence of how we humans organize our experience and share those experiences with others. Very simply put, dramatic experiences of all kinds, from witnessing crimes to car accidents, do not become completely real until the very first time we tell the story of an event to another person.
The story organizes the experience for the participant, and it creates a shared reality for those who hear it and feel the emotional subtext of it. Storytelling is an essential feature of trials, and Leigh Johnson has made it an accessible and understandable process for trial lawyers who often win or lose their trials by virtue of how well they tell the stories of their clients to jurors and judges. The thoroughness of her work is breathtaking in its scope. I have taught and trained with Leigh, she knows the material and has given it considerable thought over the years.
From a World Class Trial Lawyer and Tribal Judge
This book is a formula for success in the courtroom or even if you just want to be a better storyteller. It has the capabilities to turn a junior attorney or an okay litigator of any years of experience into a colorful storyteller that can win cases. The story spines are the anchor to captivating an audience and ensuring that they are remembering the pertinent pieces to the themes and theories of a case. A must read for all attorneys, I’m sure.
From a Former Lead Defense Counsel at the Military Commissions Defense Organization
A Focus Group is not a crystal ball – but it can give you a glimpse into the strengths and weaknesses of your case.
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