Juryology

This blog will have lots of material on voir dire, but here are some things that I happen to have been discussing with clients in the last couple of weeks.
1. Be more likeable. This is for lots of reasons, starting with the fact that trust tracks likeability. People trust who they like. [...]

Let’s stipulate that the whole point of voir dire is to elicit honest, candid responses on issues that bear on the case, so that lawyers can exercise challenges effectively. If we aren’t getting the most candid responses from jurors, then the point is thwarted, and the whole exercise is rendered useless, and fairness suffers.
Well, [...]

Facts don’t persuade.
Sorry, but they don’t. I have counseled Fortune 100 companies in their sales negotiations, and salespeople often think that if they just told the prospective customer more features and functions (i.e., facts), then the prospect would have an epiphany and see things Our Way, and be persuaded to buy.
It doesn’t work. It doesn’t [...]

It happens periodically: there is someone in the venire who has key similarities to your client. You might be representing the plaintiff who lost a leg in a workplace injury, or a corporate defendant being sued for breach of contract and fraud. And we have all felt that tug on our consciousness: “Cool! This person [...]