Joseph S
- Research Program Mentor
JD at Stetson University
Expertise
Law, Civil Litigation, Legal Research, Trial Advocacy, Storytelling and Communication, Creative Writing (fiction, comics), Narrative through comics, History of comics as a medium
Bio
I became a lawyer to help people. My job as a Plaintiff attorney lets me represent those who are injured in all sorts of ways, from car wrecks to assaults and everything in between, by filing lawsuits and going to trial. I spend my days divided between trials and hearings in the courtroom, phone calls with medical providers and insurance companies, and speaking with clients to listen to their concerns and understand their stories. I also have a passion for storytelling, both in the legal field (part of my interest in law school was how to best tell a story to a jury) and in my personal life, where I write short stories and work on drafts of my novel. In my view, the narratives we tell ourselves and others shape our lives, and so studying how those narratives are constructed is essential.Project ideas
A Study of Tort Reform Laws in America
This project will use basic legal research to illustrate the ongoing attempt to limit a person's right to sue corporations and businesses, through techniques called damage caps and malpractice laws, and will examine some ways for an injured party to fight back.
Trials in Movies: How We Tell Stories About Telling Stories
This breakdown and analysis of the most famous movies about trial work - A Few Good Men, The Verdict, and A Time to Kill - is intended to highlight the public speaking techniques used by fictional lawyers, as well as how the scenes in the courtroom compare to real-life trial work. In doing so, the project will analyze how the often complicated right to due process is dramatized and understood by the people who may ultimately depend on that right.
