Strategies for Handling High-Conflict Opposing Counsel
Some opposing counsel escalate everything: correspondence, motions, tone. This 1-hour course explains the predictable behavior of high-conflict opposing counsel and gives you tools for managing the relationship in and out of court, including professional splitting dynamics and the support you should line up for yourself.
Your instructor
Bill Eddy, LCSW, Esq.
Co-founder & Chief Innovation Officer, High Conflict Institute
500,000+
professionals trained worldwide
You can't choose opposing counsel. You can choose the dynamic.
In every occupation a small percentage of people bring high-conflict patterns, and the practice of law is no exception. A high-conflict opposing counsel means constant accusations, inflamed correspondence, and manufactured urgency for the life of the case. Their patterns are predictable, and predictable behavior can be managed, with the right tools and the discipline not to mirror it.
Outcomes you'll bring back from Handling High-Conflict Opposing Counsel.
- Recognize common high-conflict patterns in opposing counsel early.
- Understand the personality dynamics at the core of chronic incivility.
- Identify the five high-conflict personality types as they appear in legal practice.
- Avoid mirroring hostility: the conflict brain and mirror neurons at work.
- Manage professional splitting dynamics before they distort a case.
- Build the support and consultation habits that keep you steady.
Who Handling High-Conflict Opposing Counsel is built for.
Attorneys
Strategies for the opposing counsel who escalates every exchange.
Paralegals & Legal Staff
Handle the correspondence and calls that come with a high-conflict counsel on the other side.
Judges & Court Officers
Recognize and manage attorney incivility patterns in your courtroom.
How Handling High-Conflict Opposing Counsel is delivered.
A 1-hour on-demand video course with supporting articles on incivility and professional splitting.
- 60-minute video course — The patterns, the dynamics, and the management strategies.
- PowerPoint PDF — Downloadable slides to keep as a reference.
- Articles — Supporting reading on incivility and splitting dynamics.
- Certificate of Completion — 1 hour documented.
Bill Eddy, LCSW, Esq.
Bill Eddy, LCSW, Esq. is the co-founder and Chief Innovation Officer of the High Conflict Institute. He pioneered the High Conflict Personality Theory (HCP) and is an international expert on managing disputes involving people with high-conflict personalities. He is the author or co-author of more than 25 books, manuals, and workbooks, co-host of the podcast It's All Your Fault!, and writes a Psychology Today blog with millions of views.
Before co-founding HCI, Bill was the Senior Family Mediator at the National Conflict Resolution Center for 15 years, a Certified Family Law Specialist lawyer representing clients in family court for 15 years, and a licensed clinical social worker therapist with twelve years of experience. He has served on the faculty of the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University School of Law, taught as a Conjoint Associate Professor with the University of Newcastle Law School in Australia, and trained professionals in over 35 U.S. states and 13 countries.
Handling High-Conflict Opposing Counsel — frequently asked questions.
Who is this course for?
How do I access the course?
Will I get continuing education credit?
Is this legal or therapeutic advice?
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Ready to enroll?
Enroll an individual seat now, or talk to us about a private cohort designed around your organization's actual cases.
