Institutio Oratoria, Vol. III

...so that, by first discrediting the prosecutors, we may attack the final point when the judges have already come to believe that all the accusations are worthless. However, an introduction will be necessary to explain why the most serious charge was deferred and to promise that a defense will be provided, lest we appear afraid of a charge that we do not address immediately. 12 Charges regarding a previous life should generally be cleared away first, so that the judge may begin to listen with a favorable disposition to the matter on which he must pass judgment. But Cicero, in his defense of Varenus, postponed even this to the end, guided not by the most frequent practice, but by what was advantageous in that specific instance.

13 When the accusation is simple, we must determine whether to provide a single response or several. If it is one, we must consider whether we should base our argument on the facts or on the written law. If on the facts, we must decide whether to deny the charge or justify it. If on the written law, we must determine on what specific point of law the conflict arises, and within that, whether the inquiry concerns the literal wording or the intention. 14 We shall achieve this by considering which law creates the dispute—that is, under what law the trial was established. For in school exercises, laws are sometimes introduced merely to connect the sequence of events; for instance: A father who recognizes a child he had exposed, may take him back after paying for his keep. [Regarding] a son who does not obey...