Program Details
2026-12-07 12:00:00
Over 1,000+ webinars
Course Overview
2026-12-07 12:00:00
2h CLE Credits
Intermediate
2
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm ESTThis session takes jury-trained litigators on either side through the first half of a federal civil bench trial,
from the trial setting through the close of evidence. It covers reading the judge’s trial order as the trial
plan, choosing between live and affidavit witnesses, drafting affidavits that survive paragraph-byparagraph objections, building proposed findings by claim element, forcing rulings on carried objections
and Rule 702 challenges before the record closes, and timing a motion for judgment on partial findings
under Rule 52(c). Attendees leave with an affidavit admissibility checklist and an element-by-element
findings matrix.
R. David Donoghue
Ed Duffy 1:10 pm - 2:10 pm ESTThis session shows federal civil trial lawyers on either side how to write post-trial findings that hold a bench trial judgment on appeal. It works through Orkin v. Albert, Urizar-Mota v. United States, and Bad River Band v. Enbridge as redlines of the findings the winning side should have proposed, covering predicate and alternative findings, lost-services arithmetic, and remedy method and equitable factors. It also covers building the record the findings cite, drafting findings the judge can sign, and closing the file with carried rulings, extra findings, and the motion to add a finding. Attendees leave with a post-trial findings audit checklist and model redlines.
R. David DonoghueEd DuffyR. David Donoghue is a first-chair intellectual property trial lawyer and partner in Holland & Knight’s Chicago office, where he serves as the firm’s nationwide intellectual property practice lead while maintaining an active trial docket. He was first chair in a standard essential patent (SEP) damages bench trial that ended in a significant defense victory for hardware manufacturers, and he has tried patent and Computer Fraud and Abuse Act cases to jury verdicts. His practice covers patent, trade secret, trademark, and copyright disputes in federal district courts, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board.
Ed Duffy is a first-chair antitrust trial lawyer and partner in Baker Botts’ Washington, D.C. office. As senior litigation counsel in the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division, he was lead trial counsel in the challenge to JetBlue Airways’ attempted acquisition of Spirit Airlines and led the government’s team through a six-week bench trial in which the court enjoined the transaction. He has tried antitrust, commercial, tort, intellectual property, environmental, and other complex cases to judgment in bench trials, jury trials, and arbitrations, and has defended judgments on appeal.
R. David Donoghue is a first-chair intellectual property trial lawyer and partner in Holland & Knight’s Chicago office, where he serves as the firm’s nationwide intellectual property practice lead while maintaining an active trial docket. He was first chair in a standard essential patent (SEP) damages bench trial that ended in a significant defense victory for hardware manufacturers, and he has tried patent and Computer Fraud and Abuse Act cases to jury verdicts. His practice covers patent, trade secret, trademark, and copyright disputes in federal district courts, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and the U.S. Patent Trial and Appeal Board.
Ed Duffy is a first-chair antitrust trial lawyer and partner in Baker Botts’ Washington, D.C. office. As senior litigation counsel in the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division, he was lead trial counsel in the challenge to JetBlue Airways’ attempted acquisition of Spirit Airlines and led the government’s team through a six-week bench trial in which the court enjoined the transaction. He has tried antitrust, commercial, tort, intellectual property, environmental, and other complex cases to judgment in bench trials, jury trials, and arbitrations, and has defended judgments on appeal.
Requirements
The Alabama State Bar MCLE Commission requires attorneys to complete 12 credits, including 1 ethics, by December 31 of each year. All credits must be reported by February 15 of the following year. A maximum of 12 credits, including 1 ethics credit, may be carried over for 1 year only.
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