Trial Ready: How the Best Paralegals Stay Three Steps Ahead (MCLE)

Trial Ready: How the Best Paralegals Stay Three Steps Ahead

You already know the basics. You've survived the all-nighters, the last-minute exhibit chaos, and the attorney who changes strategy at 9pm the night before trial. This session isn't about starting from scratch, it's about sharpening everything you already do and showing you where technology can quietly do the heavy lifting.

Join Joe Stephens, J.D., for a practical, skills-forward session built specifically for legal support professionals who want to level up their trial prep game. You'll walk away with proven techniques for anticipating attorney needs, organizing critical documents, and transforming complex case materials into compelling, court-ready presentations faster than ever before.

You’ll explore:

1. Attorney Work Styles: Understanding how your attorney actually thinks and building systems around it
2. Document & Timeline Mastery: Organizing case materials in ways that hold up under trial pressure
3. Deposition Support: What seamless deposition prep looks like before, during, and after
4. AI Workflows: How modern tools are helping paralegals move from reactive support to proactive case architecture
5. Trial Excellence: Building the command center mentality that keeps everything running smoothly when it matters most

Walk away with strategies you can use immediately and a fresh perspective on what great trial prep actually looks like. Your next case will thank you.

Presented by: 
Joe Stephens, JD
Director,
Legal Solutions at Steno

Tuesday, June 9, 2026
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM 
Online via Zoom

Joe Stephens, J.D. is the Director of Legal Solutions at Steno, and is the architect of one of Texas' largest rural public defender offices where he mastered the art of managing complex cases across twelve counties with limited resources. His diverse professional experience ranges from direct client representation to working three legislative sessions under two different Committee Chairmen in the Texas Legislature. A graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, Joe combines his passion for legal technology with practical experience to help teams work more efficiently, and is now teaching the next generation of legal professionals at Texas Tech University School of Law.