The Power of Brevity in Presentations: Lawyers Saying Less is More

Mon, Jan 12th, 2026 | by Miles Mediation and Arbitration | Article | Social Share

By Joe Murphey

“If I am to speak for an hour, I’m ready now; If I am to speak for five minutes, I’ll need two weeks to prepare.”

This quote is variously attributed to Mark Twain, Winston Churchill, Woodrow Wilson, and others. There are two truths contained in this one maxim. “Brevity takes work” is the obvious one. The more subtle, implied truth is this: it’s totally worth it. Even though I bill by the hour as a mediator, I absolutely love a short and sweet mediation opening. It generally works better. But as someone who witnesses presentations daily, I can tell you that brevity is far less common than it should be.

I think the educational system is to blame for our overall lack as a society, and a profession, of “minimizing” skills. In school, did we ever have a “maximum” word count for our essays? Never. It was always a minimum. From those early times we were taught “more is better” when it comes to words. I remember being told before taking the essay portion of the bar exam, “if you have no idea what the question is getting at, just fill the pages with anything. Whatever you do, keep writing.” Well, I did pass the bar on my first try, and I can say I did employ that “filibuster” strategy a time or two.

However, as soon as we became attorneys, we immediately ran into word limits. Appellate courts limit the words in our briefs, and they limit time for oral arguments. It turns out, when people are required to read, or listen to, our words, they want to read or hear as few of them as possible. The world wants us to get right to the point. With that in mind, here are seven strategies for tightening up that presentation.

Incorporate By Reference

This is a great technique where the story you need to tell is steeped in granular detail. I mediated a case where chronic, systemic issues on a construction site numbered into the hundreds. Each issue was the subject of a separate code or ordinance violation. The attorney presenting his case covered the first violation in exacting detail. Then he said, “there are 749 more of these, each one a different but equally shocking violation of the basic rules of workplace safety. They are all listed in the notebooks we’ve provided you.” And then he moved on to something else, having made his point.

Start with an Outline; Then Stay on Message

A trip will seem shorter if you know where you’re going and how long it will take. (Which is why we were always asking our parents, “are we there yet?” even if they never really let us in on the deets of the itinerary.) Such is also the case with a rhetorical journey.

Any presentation will seem shorter if you tell the audience where you’re headed, set a time budget, and then stay under it. When I hear an introduction like this, I know I’m dealing with a great public speaker: “there are three issues critical to understanding this case. They are A, B, and C. I will address each in turn, and it should take about 30 minutes to cover them all.” That intro, followed by a 20-minute presentation, will bring down the house.

If you must use a PowerPoint…
Never, ever, ever read from a PowerPoint slide. Period. When I was a Scoutmaster, I taught the “Communication” merit badge. That course includes instruction on modern digital media literacy – i.e., how to draft and present a PowerPoint slide show. My teaching methods were somewhat diabolical, but here’s what I did. I asked each scout to prepare a PowerPoint slide show before class. Then, when they rose to present, I told them there was only one rule: You can’t say any of the words on the slide being presented.

At first, they were mortified, but it soon became a competition to see which scout could effectively use the slides without reading from them. So, if you have a PowerPoint, let the audience read the text while you give an overview or summary of what’s on the slide. Or better yet, talk about something else. One of the best presentations I’ve ever seen was by an attorney clicking through a series of slides about complicated medical procedures. The attorney mentioned nothing about the slides and instead told a gripping story about his client’s long and arduous struggle to return to normalcy.

Study Concise Writing and Presenting

Concise writing is very hard to do. But like many things, it is a skill that can be learned. There are two books you MUST read, annotate and refer to for mastery of the skill of concise writing. They are William Zinsser’s On Writing Well and William Strunk and E.B. White’s (yes, that E.B. White) The Elements of Style. I have worked for years to trim the fat from my writing, and like actual weight loss, it’s a never-ending struggle.

I have the blessing of a sharp and merciless editor who reviews my articles for publication. She’s like a personal trainer for my prose. I can assure you that whatever version of this article is published, it will be leaner than the one I’m typing on my computer just now. (Who knows, maybe this whole passage will be omitted). So, study the masters of concise writing and find your own editor, or critic who will be candid, to mark up your text and evaluate your presentation performance.

Take Advantage of Technology

Here’s a fun thing to do. Take something you’ve written and submit it to ChatGPT (or some other AI tool) and ask it to produce a version that maintains the essence of your text, but with half the word count. AI can also be used to simplify outlines, create topic headings, and identify the most important points in your presentation. Lawyers, of course, must never use AI as a research tool unless it is specifically designed for that purpose. But for basic presentations, AI help you trim your pitch.

And there are simpler technical resources at your fingertips. I encountered one of them when I was writing the second paragraph of this article. When I typed the phrase “on a daily basis,” the Word editor program underlined that phrase and suggested, “More concise language would be clearer for your reader”. It recommended just the word “daily” as a replacement. (You’re probably rereading the second paragraph of this article to see if I took that advice.)

Read the Room

Nodding along with a speaker who is rambling on may be one of the most misunderstood gestures we have developed as a civilized society. Those who study non-verbal communication will tell you that a listener who is nodding along with you is likely saying, “I get your point. Please wrap it up.” For some reason, speakers often misinterpret this as “You’re killing it. Please continue.”

There are many other ways an audience can signal displeasure or boredom with a speaker. But unless you’re at a professional wrestling match, the cues will be more subtle than a chorus of “boos”. There are several books that teach the skill of reading an audience and making powerful, concise presentations that resonate with them; I recommend Nancy Duarte’s Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences.

Open the Floor for Questions

Many attorneys worry that they will leave some burning question unanswered or important issue unaddressed if they shorten a presentation. At mediation, the attorney could follow a brief opening with something like, “if you have any questions I haven’t addressed, just let me know. We are here to listen to you, and the mediator, and to explain our position as best we can.”

Conclusion

I challenge you to make your next presentation – whether it’s an oral argument, mediation opening, or a pitch to your spouse for finally buying that vacation cottage – more concise and precise. But you’ll need to do the work: sharpen your presentation skills, trim that text, practice before a critical audience, and read the room during the presentation.

Brevity is a gift you give to your audience. My father had it right when he said, “No one ever told the preacher his sermon was too short.”

*Originally published in the Daily Report and reprinted with permission.

About Joe Murphey

Since 2005, Joe Murphey is a mediator and attorney who has mediated more than 3,000 cases at Miles Mediation & Arbitration, with a success rate of over 80 percent. He is a founding member of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals and has been included in Georgia Super Lawyers every year since 2007. When he’s not mediating, volunteering in the community, or spending time with his family, Joe is usually playing his drums and/or harmonicas with several local bands.