Social networking by jurors can result in a new trial, creating increased expense for the parties. The American College of Trial Lawyer has issued a brief report on this issue, and has proposed several instructions to prospective and empaneled jurors. For example, ACTL recommends that this language be included on summonses…
Don Maciejewski has published an article entitled "Dealing With Difficult Opposing Counsel – How to Tame "Rambo’" in the January / February 2012 edition of Litigation Commentary & Review. Don includes 13 helpful hints on how to deal with jerks. As he correctly notes, "Rambo is probably well-skilled in lying…
Paul Luvera has a nice article on his Plaintiff Trial Lawyer Tips blog that discusses virtual focus groups. He mentions three different services that lawyers can use to test their cases: Virtual Jury.com; Trial Juries, and eJury.com. eJury has a sample case presentation available for review that includes not only a…
The Cross-Examination Blog has published a helpful checklist on avoiding errors in preparing for and conducting cross-examinations that will be helpful to trial lawyers handling tort cases. The blog is written by Ronald Clark, the author of the Cross-Examination Handbook, which I reviewed last year. Here is the review. Ronald…
Jury Research Institute has a fine article about the all-important task of witness preparation. The article breaks down the preparation process into three stages: Stage 1 involves orienting the witness to the courtroom and the roles of the people who the witness can expect to see in the courtroom. Stage…
The Federal Rules of Evidence have been "restyled" effective December 1, 2011. The objective was to make the rules simpler to understand and use without substantively changing the meaning. The Federal Evidence Review has a free PDF that not only contains the new rules but also links to legislative history,…
Two lawyers in Connecticut recently made news when they elected not to put on proof of economic losses in a trial of a personal injury case, instead focusing on non-economic damages. The result? A verdict for $10 million in non-economic damages. The case arose when representatives of Segway failed to…
Alexandra Rudolph has written an informative article titled "Trial Techniques: What Lawyers Should (and Should Not) Worry About in the Courtroom." Ms. Rudolph, the owner of a Chicago jury research firm, believes that "attorneys spend too much time worrying about things they can’t control, such as opinions expressed during jury selection,…
PowerPoint is a useful tool at the trial of personal injury and wrongful death cases. However, there is a right way and wrong way to use it. This video by Don McMillian points out some of the errors one can make in the use of PowerPoint. Does this…
I read a tweet the other day suggesting that a lawyer should have had an appellate lawyer present at trial. I cant remember who wrote the tweet but, if I had to guess, it was an appellate lawyer. I guess an appellate lawyer will do you some good at trial…