The Winning Litigator®

Getting Bigger and Better Damages

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What's one of the biggest mistakes made by attorneys seeking damages? Separating liability from damages and leaving the damages presentation to the end of their case. It's important to weave damages -- especially evidence supporting claims for emotional distress damages -- throughout your case. It’s an easy mistake to understand after all -- as attorneys we’re trained to prove the elements of the case, and those elements are separated into elements of liability and damage. However, jurors widely believe that ...

In Presenting Evidence to the Jury, Trial Exhibit Numbers are Crucial

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As litigators, we strive to present evidence clearly to the jury, so they have the necessary information to render a verdict in favor of our client. We want jurors to hear a trial exhibit number, and then write it down, so they can refer to it in their notes during deliberation. Although this seems like an obvious proposition, I'm surprised how few litigators pay attention to highlighting exhibit numbers in their presentations for jurors. Let Jurors Know the Trial Exhibit ...

At Video Depositions, Even a Glass of Water Can be Trouble

One of my favorite discovery tools is the video deposition. I take video depositions of virtually every witness in every case. I show video excerpts at almost every trial. Most of us at one point or another in our legal careers will have a client whose deposition is taken and simultaneously recorded on video. Of course, it’s important to prepare the client for the types of questions that might be asked and to understand, generally, how a deposition works. But, ...

Make Industry-Specific Details Clear to the Jury

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One of the most difficult types of trials that I've wrestled with is what I refer to as the “Insidery Trial”. What do I mean by the “Insidery Trial”? It’s a trial where documentary evidence or testamentary evidence involves industry or company specific details that have the potential to be overwhelming or confusing to jurors. For instance, in a case involving a corporation where forms and documents use acronyms abbreviations like ACC, DVT, QTR, ARP, BDC, etc., and which terms ...

She’s not a Potted Plant . . . How Your Interaction with Your Client at Trial Can Be Crucial to a Favorable Verdict

As a litigator, you have a lot of details to manage. One of the most crucial details is the jury’s perception of your client relationship. Managing your client relationship is vital at trial. Why is the jury's perception of your relationship with your client important to the outcome of a trial? Jurors notice and discuss attorney-client rapport in the jury room. How many times have any of us seen another attorney who barely speaks to, or even looks at, their ...

Trial Strategy: For Better Rulings in Trial, Write a “Brief Brief”

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Do you have pieces of evidence that you think the judge may not admit? Is there testimony you want to get into the record, but you think the judge might exclude? If you know in advance that you may have a problem with certain testimony or other evidence, but you’re convinced that its admission would be legally correct, how do you maximize your chance to include the evidence, or make the best possible record in case your evidence is not ...