Trial Presentation: Greatest Hits Volume 3

As I have explained in the past, this blog is my passion and hobby, but not my profession. As a result, you will periodically see uneven posting schedules at times, when professional demands require more time. Even so, although the level of traffic during the longer gaps decreases somewhat, it still remains strong. The best compliment I can get on my blog is that people read, enjoy, and share. Thanks for your ongoing support! 

Here are few of the most popular articles recently on Court Technology and Trial Presentation. If you're interested in a topic you don't see here, try the Search feature. If it has to do with trial presentation and technology, chances are you'll find something on your topic.

Courtroom Projectors, Screens, and MonitorsA few tips on what works in the courtroom, and what doesn’t. Should you rent or buy? Do courtrooms already have everything you need? 

Presenting Evidence in Trial - The Belli SeminarThis article features the importance of visual evidence presentation. The best in the profession seem to share a common thread. Comments like “It looks too flashy,” or “I want the jury to focus on me” just don’t make much sense these days. 

iPad Apps for Lawyers: iJuror, JuryTracker, Jury DutyA few top apps for voir dire and jury monitoring are covered here. There is a great deal of interest in bringing the iPad to trial, and it weighs less than a box of books and legal pads. 

Can't See the Forest For the TreesDuring preparation for trial, a team learns the fine details and strengths of a case. What is often overlooked during trial is that jurors may not understand even the most basic elements of the case. To make assumptions in this regard may lead to disaster. 

Comparison of TrialDirector, Sanction, and VisionaryI am often asked which is better, or which do I prefer. Although my personal preference is TrialDirector, I am always happy to use whatever the client needs. Trial presentation software is a tool, and is only as good as the person working with it.

Presenting Evidence in Trial - The Belli Seminar

I had the honor last week of speaking at the Belli Seminar,an event organized by the Santa Clara Trial Lawyers Association, held at the Lincoln Law School, in San Jose. A day-longcollection of non-stop 10-minute presentations, the seminar was moderated bynone other than Melvin Belli Jr., and featured many well-known speakers,including Mark Geragos, Jury Consultants Amy Singer and Tammy Metzger, Tommy (Princeof Torts) Malone, Gerry Spence Trial Lawyers College President Jude Basile, andseveral top Plaintiff’s attorneys from California, Washington, Texas and NewYork. I can honestly say that this was one of the best and most educationalevents I’ve ever attended.

While any of the faculty could have easily covered the entire dayon their own, the unique part of this program was that it truly forced eachpresenter to give the “best of their best,” since we all had only 10 minutesfor each presentation, followed by five minutes for questions. My notes and “take-homes”are likely nearly identical to what they’d have been, had each speaker coveredan hour or more.

What was interesting to me was that many of the presentationscovered similar topics, but each showed a unique approach to the same end goal.Some used no technology at all, while others did. One interesting point broughtout by one of the speakers was the desire to put an “image” into your jurors’minds. I helped to demonstrate how to do that, and how to make sure it’s theright image, and that they all have the same image in mind. Carefully-craftedwords often cannot replace a visual display of the evidence.

Image by LegalVision, San Francisco

Jury Consultant Tammy Metzger covered the Reptilian Brainand reading micro-expressions. This was fascinating stuff that you may not even notice – even though you can “feel”the emotions of others around you.

Jury Consultant Amy Singer discussed the Casey Anthonytrial, and how she directed the analysis of over 40,000 social media followers.She also shared a demonstration on how to do it even on smaller or low profile cases.

The program wrapped up with a brief Voir Dire of 8 jurors. Thiswas a great learning experience, as was the discussion afterward.

I’ve never seen this type of program presented before, butleave it to Silicon Valley to drive the innovation. For the record, I was theonly one presenting from my iPad (using TrialPad). When I asked, well over halfof the attendees raised their hands, claiming to own an iPad. The Silicon Valley Plaintiffs Bar is certainly ahead of some other groups I've presented to. Thanks to EdVasquez for putting this together and inviting me. After a long week in trial,it was time well spent.

Just received a nice thank-you note John Shepardson, Belli Seminar Chairman:

Thankyou so much for presenting at the seminar.  The visuals are huge in whatwe do, andMel Belli was a pioneer in Demonstrative Evidence.  Please keep in touch. The feedback fromour members has been hugely positive.

Courtroom Projectors, Screens, and Monitors

Many courtrooms today are set up with nearly everything you’llneed to simply plug in to the system and present your evidence. Judgesgenerally encourage and appreciate the use of technology, since it tends tospeed up the trial process, and has the added benefit of making the evidenceeasier to follow and understand for the jury. Although it is sometimes assumedthat jurors will think electronic trial presentation looks too flashy, or that your client has spent a lot of money, post-trialsurveys prove that this is not the case.

Projector

A popular article I’ve written covers one simple item: BestProjectors for Courtroom Presentations. I discussed there that you wouldneed a minimum of 3000 lumens in a well-lit courtroom, and that you shouldavoid anything with DLP technology, since it will turn your nice yellowdocument highlighting to a pea-soup green color. There is no point in usinginferior equipment when the exhibits cannot be clearly viewed by the entirejury.

Another issue today would be whether to purchase awide-screen or standard projector. Although it would appear that thewide-screen, or 16:9 format already dominates the television market, it’s notquite there when it comes to available screens. Most screens you’ll find arestandard (or 4:3) format, meaning you’ll end up with a blank band on top of andbelow your exhibits. Fortunately, there are some models that will accommodate either.I would recommend considering one of those.

Also, you might want to consider a short-throw lens. Someprojectors come with them, and some have optional extra lenses which may beused. The benefit here is that the projector may be placed only a few feet fromthe screen, making it less likely that you will continually be walking betweenthe screen and projector. Although you probably won’t notice when part of the imageis on your suit, others will, and it is very distracting.

Screen

Many courtrooms have a screen installed. Some are largeenough, and some were apparently installed by the lowest bidder, regardless ofsize. Generally, you’ll want at least a 7 or 8 foot screen in a courtroom. Onemodel I like is the InstaTheater, by DaLite. It stores in a tube, and does notrequire a tripod, so it fits well in a congested courtroom. It may also beplaced on top of a table, if necessary.

Large Plasma or LCDMonitors

Another option you will find installed in some courtrooms isa large monitor, instead of a projector and screen. While they may be adequatefor watching the news, sports, or movies at home, when you consider that theyare only about half as large as a standard screen, you will likely find thatthey’re not really the ideal solution for trial presentation to a largeaudience. You can use more than one, but you also lose the effect of having onecommon focal point for all to view, and you can forget about using a laserpointer on it. Some cases require the color and clarity that only this type ofmonitor can provide.

Individual Monitors

You may want to install separate monitors for the Judge,witness, and each counsel table. This will allow everyone to view an exhibitright in front of them, which is necessary in some courtrooms, where noteveryone will have a clear view of the screen. The added benefit is that thissystem may be used to preview evidence before it has been admitted intoevidence, leaving the projector off. Once an exhibit has been admitted, theprojector is then turned on for the jury.

Audio System

Don’t forget this critical detail if you have anything thatyou want others to hear. One example that is frequently overlooked is thevideotaped deposition. Unless you have a decent speaker set connected, nobodywill hear the audio from your laptop.

Switcher

In order to control which party has access to the courtroomsystem, some sort of switching device must be installed. A matrix switch orswitchable distribution amplifier may be used for this purpose. Some judgeswill also want their own “kill switch,” in order that the might disable theprojector if necessary, although this was more common several years ago, whenthe use of technology was new and untested.

Gaffer’s Tape

Don’t even dream about using anything but professionalgaffer’s tape to secure all of your electrical, video, and audio cables. Gaffer’stape is designed to not leave any residue, nor to pull the fabric from thecourt’s carpeting. Duct tape will certainly hold the cables in place, but youmight find yourself replacing the carpeting if you try using it.

Equipment Rental orPurchase

Most Trial Presentation Consulting firms have all of thisavailable, which means that you don’t have to ship the equipment, install thesystem in the courtroom, tape cables, and make sure that everything is in goodworking order. You can also purchase and handle of this yourself, if you’reso-inclined. No matter whether you rent or purchase, make sure you install andtest it before trial. You and your client do not want the Judge to tell you thatif you can’t make it work, you’ll not be able to use it.

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