Trial Advocacy Training: Edinburgh

CPD 12 hours

Thursday 9 July 2026: 9:30am – 4:30pm
Friday 10 July 2026: 9:30am – 4:30pm

This interactive two-day course is designed to provide trial lawyers with the skills and confidence needed to conduct effective Examination in Chief and Cross-Examination in criminal trials and civil proofs.

The course follows a learning-by-doing methodology, allowing delegates to practise advocacy skills in a realistic trial setting. Participants will examine and cross-examine witnesses within the context of a simulated trial process, developing courtroom technique, structure, and communication skills.

Each advocacy exercise is followed by constructive analysis and detailed feedback, enabling delegates to identify strengths, address weaknesses, and refine their approach. Where recorded, delegates will have the opportunity to review their own performance, an invaluable tool for developing court craft and self-awareness.

• Effective Examination in Chief
• Structured and purposeful Cross-Examination
• Questioning technique and witness control
• Communication, confidence, and active listening
• Identifying and advancing supportive facts
• Understanding the role of story and case theory in trials

• Highly practical and interactive
• Small group training to ensure individual feedback
• Mock court environment
• Supportive, professional learning atmosphere

• Trainee solicitors
• Newly qualified lawyers
• Experienced practitioners seeking to refresh or refine advocacy skills

Completion of the course allows you to add a National Institute of Trial Advocacy (NITA)–trained lawyer credential to your qualifications.

This course is suitable for practitioners working in criminal and civil litigation who want to strengthen their trial advocacy and witness-handling skills.

Places are limited to ensure high-quality feedback and meaningful participation.

Angus Crawford
Lawyer, Advocacy Trainer and Expert Witness Trainer

Angus Crawford is an experienced trial lawyer with over 25 years’ experience appearing in trials and procedural hearings within the Scottish courts. He is a Director at Expert Advocacy and an accredited trainer in the National Institute for Trial Advocacy (NITA) method.

Angus plays a leading role in legal education, delivering advocacy training for organisations including the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, the Public Defence Solicitors’ Office, and the Civil Legal Assistance Office.

He also works extensively with professionals and expert witnesses across sectors such as healthcare, policing, and forensic science, helping them develop the skills to present clear, persuasive evidence in court.

Alongside his training work, Angus is involved with the Glasgow Caledonian University Law School, where he contributes to advanced advocacy programmes and provides expert witness training to the Department of Applied Chemistry at the Univerity of Strathclyde.