How not to conduct an oral argument  The United States Court of
Appeals for the Seventh Circuit heard arguments this week in a
case involving the University of Notre Dame and the issue of
contraceptive coverage. News reports painted a picture where the
three-judge panel (Judges Posner, Hamilton, and Flaum) were
skeptical of the University’s arguments. Some of them even went
so far as to note that Judge Posner repeatedly told counsel for
the University that he couldn’t understand the University’s
argument.   What many of the news reports missed, however, was
the fact that the University’s attorney, Matthew Kairis of Jones
Day, violated some of the most basic principles of any oral
argument presented to a court. Kairis wouldn’t answer simple
yes-or-no questions, leading Judge Posner to threaten at one
point that he wouldn’t permit Kairis to continue his argument if
he wouldn’t answer a simple question. Kairis repeatedly talked
over the judges, leading Judge Posner to tell him to stop
interrupting. Right out of