Teaching Witnesses to Help the Jury
By Harry Jones, Jason Bloom and Emily McDonald All Articles
Texas Lawyer
November 19, 2012
Litigators must educate witnesses about effective courtroom communication so the witnesses can articulate a detailed and convincing story for jurors. Witness preparation must begin with understanding the audience, include what the witness legitimately can expect to accomplish during testimony and involve rehearsal of key communication skills.
No. 1: Simulate the trial experience during witness preparation. A lawyer on a shoestring budget can conduct an effective simulation. Aesthetic alterations to a conference room, such as lining up chairs to resemble a jury box, quickly set the scene for the witness. Office staff can fill the chairs to make the experience more authentic. Practicing direct and cross-examination within this environment helps the witness and attorney alike by rehearsing in a more representative environment.
Jurors have the same fundamental needs and fears that people have in everyday life: needs for inclusion and acceptance and fears of rejection and embarrassment. Click Here To Read More
How to Help Jurors Render a Favorable Decision
By Harry Jones, Jason Bloom and Emily McDonald
Texas Lawyer
September 17, 2012
The rationale for almost every jury verdict can fit on one side of a 3 x 5 notecard. “The company was not fair,” or “The plaintiff was deceptive.” Yet, lawyers spend dozens, even hundreds of hours addressing irrelevancies. The modern juror, inundated by information, craves simple truths. Here are some that trial lawyers should bear in mind.
There is no one recipe for a great trial team. Sincerity, a passion for the case, organization, consistency and a commonsense story are a good start. These low-tech attributes win cases and should remain the lawyer’s principal tools.
Attorneys should resist the urge to overuse flashy technology and graphics. Unlike the actors who play attorneys on the big screen, counsel doesn’t have the luxury of Hollywood make-up or second takes. Also, they should refuse the temptation to complicate the story.
Litigators must distill the case down to the essential facts. Counsel’s goal is clarity — in voir dire, opening statements, witness preparation and closing arguments. They should anticipate jurors’ questions; the best lawyers answer questions jurors are asking themselves.
Simplicity is key. Jurors hear what they understand; they do not understand all they hear. When polled, jurors seldom complain that lawyers made the trial too simple.
The good witness is consistent. That means his deposition testimony and his trial testimony should cohere. His verbal and nonverbal signals should agree. His emotions should remain steady throughout direct and cross-examinations. Each witness must know the case theme and deliver clear testimony to support it. This will allow counsel to show the jury how to connect the dots. Click Here To Read More
To maximize the chances of a successful voir dire, an attorney must counteract the negative views with which many potential jurors enter the courtroom, understand….To read the rest of this article click here…
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Emily McDonald presented at the 24th Annual Employment Conference – South Texas College of Law on “From the Corner Office to the Jury Box” Houston, Texas, July 14, 2011