There are two kinds of trials: real ones and Hollywood. In his no-nonsense account, Chris Leibig demonstrates his mastery of the genre by avoiding such filmic tropes as the courtroom admission ('You can't handle the truth!'). Instead he assists the lay reader with judicious explanation where needed ('When a victim is telling a story to the jury, don’t interfere.') Or in the jargon, 'Never lead in direct; always lead in cross.' Not that Liebig needs jargon, so lucid is his narrative. In this way he instantly draws the reader into the gritty but gripping reality of legal combat.