Lawyers, Liars, and the Art of Storytelling: Using Stories to Advocate, Influence, and Persuade

by Jonathan Shapiro

Nobody I know is funnier, smarter, or has a wider breadth of references than my friend Jonathan Shapiro. This book is a bit of a informative, insightful, poetic, and funny. —Paul Reiser, comedian, actor, and bestselling author

Using famous real-life court transcripts, television scripts, and story after story, Lawyers, Liars, and the Art of Storytelling shows the reader how to get their message across and the result they want using the time-tested elements and basic structure of great stories. Part how-to manual, part memoir, always entertaining and never lecture, this book provides storytelling lessons gleaned from years of trial practice and television writing, wrapped in—what else?—great stories.

Genres: Law, Nonfiction, Self Help

342 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2014

About the author

Jonathan Shapiro has spent the last 16 years writing and producing some of television's most iconic shows, including The Blacklist, The Practice, Life and Boston Legal. An Emmy, Peabody, and Humanitas Awards winner, he and David E. Kelley are the creators and executive producers of Goliath, a legal thriller set to air on Amazon in October 2016. In addition to his work in television, he is also the author of two recent books: the memoir "Liars, Lawyers, and the Art of Storytelling" (ABA Publishing) and the novel "Deadly Force," the first book in his Lizzie Scott series for Ankerwycke Press.

Prior to writing for television, Jonathan spent a decade as a federal prosecutor and as an adjunct law professor at Loyola Law School and the University of Southern California's Gould School of Law. He is a member and the former chairman of the California Commission on Government Economy and Efficiency, as well as the founder and director of the Public Counsel Emergency for Torture Victims. He is a graduate of Harvard University, a Rhodes Scholar at Oriel College, Oxford University, and received his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley. For the last two years, he was Of Counsel for litigation at the Kirkland & Ellis law firm.

Reviews

[Sim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! Shapiro wrote for Boston Legal, one of my favourite shows ever. This book was exactly what I was looking for at the time I picked it up—an engaging, humorous book about law as a creative practice which hinges on one’s ability to tell a good story. As a first year JD student, this aligns with my perspective of the field, but Shapiro is right in pointing out that the importance of storytelling is often undervalued by legal professionals. To quote from the book:

“Storytelling is a creative process. But creativity is not just discouraged in law school—it is banned. Only “legal” writing can be taught, and it must be coupled with “research”. The emphasis is on the proper forms of citations rather than on the mechanics of how to tell a good story.”

I loved reading the stories about Shapiro’s own experiences too; it made me feel more connected to and excited about the profession.

Side note: He spends what felt like way too much time in the first part of the book talking about how great Harvey Weinstein is as a producer. Granted, the book was published in 2016 but still…that did not age well 🫣

[Jeff Swystun · Rating 3 out of 5]

This "story" could have been shorter. Shapiro shares his trials and tribulations as lawyer and subsequently his writing and producing experiences on legal dramas including The Practice and Boston Legal. I applaud the fact that he does not provide a how-to for storytelling or writing but, at the same, time I was looking for more structure and guidance. I did enjoy his refresh on Aristotle’s three elements of the art of persuasive storytelling:

1) Ethos (encouraging us to consider elements of presentation, character and credibility);
2) Logos (encouraging us to consider elements of logic and reason); and
3) Pathos (encouraging us to consider elements of emotion).

His passion and commitment is also in evidence but I wish an editor had won a few fights to create flow and sense of the material. Lastly, I love the cover art!

[Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read

If you are a lawyer, you should read this book. If you want to become a lawyer, you should read this book. If you hate lawyers, you should read this book.

The "art" of storyteller is the heart, mind, and soul of lawyering. But like a lot of art, most of us do it poorly, as amateurs, or hobbyists.

This book is an interesting look, and a subtle study, of the art of storytrlling. If you read it, you will find it an enjoyable, breezy read, and you will not even realize you are learning to tell a story.

[Vinayak Malik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wasn't boring. And is somewhat useful too

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book for lawyers about how to tell a story effectively to persuade others. At least it includes Aristotle's rhetorical triangle.

[Lime Street Labrador · Rating 2 out of 5]

What the heck is this story

[G utf · Rating 3 out of 5]

transform the narrative, infuse logic /truth

[Naurif N. · Rating 2 out of 5]

not sure if Jonathan Shapiro is a very good storyteller. could've used a little bit more of the pathos and logos he talks about...

[Ramon Girona · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aunque parte de una interesante premisa (aplicar las técnicas del cine y la televisión a la construcción de argumentos ante los tribunales) lo cierto es que una estructura confusa y una reiteración excesiva en los detalles más nimios, en la mayoría de ocasiones desconectados de la historia que tiene que contar, desmerecen el conjunto.
En todo caso, da algunos buenos consejos y se pueden sacar algunas ideas útiles.

[Jodi Lasky · Rating 2 out of 5]

Part 2 contains some useful, interesting information. The rest of the book was Shapiro telling stories about various shows and episodes he wrote. I did not buy this book to just read his stories. I bought it to improve my ability. Mostly, I think this book contributes to that by showing what not to do.

[Hayley Lewis Folmar · Rating 3 out of 5]

some good thoughts and perception on presenting a story. A lot of rambling anecdotes that didn't impress me.