Register now for our summer workshop!
The Soft Cross: Impeaching Sympathetic Witnesses
Impeaching a child, senior citizen, or sex crime victim can pose great difficulties for the defender. The defender must invalidate the witness’s account of a traumatizing experience without alienating jurors. To do this, defenders must master the soft cross; maintain control without appearing aggressive or bullying.
Learn from Illinois’s best defenders how to cross sympathetic witnesses, see the soft cross demonstrated, and practice impeachment in small groups with special focus on tone and cadence.
This FREE workshop will be held twice with the same agenda. You decide which date to attend!
IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law
Friday, July 25, 2025
from 8:45 am - 4:15 pm
OR
University of Illinois Springfield
Friday, August 15, 2025
8:45 am - 4:15 pm
You must register by July 18th for Chicago or by August 8th for Springfield.
IPDA will provide travel reimbursement for the Springfield event, and we have a limited number of free hotel rooms at the Hilton Garden Inn on August 14th for those traveling to attend the August 15th program.
Earn 5.75 hours of General MCLE credit
For more information and to register for the July 25th program, Click Here.
For more information and to register for the August 15th program, Click Here.