How to Persuade a Courtroom

Michael Rosen talks to criminal defence barrister Joanna Hardy-Susskind about the legal language of Crown Court cases in England and Wales. From the grandeur of the courtroom and stock phrases like "with respect to my learned friend" to the more colloquial directness of talking to a defendant. How do barristers build persuasive arguments when talking to a jury, or when discussing legal matters with the judge? Do weak arguments hide behind elaborate language? Do the best barristers use more stripped back language? And how do they deliver their words? The tone, the pace, the performance. Produced in partnership with The Open University for BBC Audio Bristol by Becky Ripley.

You can listen to How to Persuade a Courtroom online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

How to Persuade a Courtroom is an episode from Word of Mouth by BBC.

This episode is 27:36 long.

This episode was published on Sep 9, 2025.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Word of Mouth when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.