What to do When You Don’t Have a Witness
It’s one of the worst feelings in the world… You’ve finished your re-direct examination, and the witness is stepping down from the witness stand to walk out of the courtroom. Then the judge turns to you and says, "Call your next witness." Your stomach tightens and your palms start to sweat as you realize: You don’t have anyone waiting in the hall. Maybe your witness’s testimony went faster than expected, maybe your opponent did a lousy job of...
Read MoreDo you listen to witnesses during direct examination?
It was a serious DUI accident, and the issue was whether or not the jury would be allowed to hear the results of the defendant’s blood alcohol level test. If the blood test results were deemed inadmissible, the plaintiff’s case would be significantly weakened, so both sides were extremely well prepared for the hearing. The defense was the moving party, so they bore the initial burden of persuasion. For their first witness, they called a toxicologist, and started with the routine questions...
Read MoreThe Danger of Leading Your Witness During Direct Examination
“You ignored the warning labels, didn’t you?” “The posted speed limit was 35 MPH, wasn’t it?” “You told him you would have the contract signed by Thursday, right?” Leading questions. When it comes to cross-examination, leading questions are the best types of questions to ask, because they suggest the desired answer to the witness. Used effectively, leading questions reduce the witness’s responses to a mere “Yes” or “No.” The real power of leading questions is that they...
Read MoreAre you ignoring your witnesses?
During a jury trial, the last thing that you want to do is to offend your jurors or give them a reason to ignore your witness. Yet that’s exactly what many lawyers do One of the best ways you can quickly improve your trial advocacy skills is to watch yourself on video. When you watch yourself presenting an opening statement or conducting a direct examination, you’ll see yourself the same way the jury sees you. (That may be wonderful, or it may be horrifying). But even better than watching...
Read MoreQuick and Easy Trial Graphics
How many times have your witnesses found themselves at a loss for words while trying to explain what happened to them or trying to explain what they saw? It happens more often than you’d like, doesn’t it? Early in my career, I was defending a motion to suppress in a Driving Under the Influence (DUI) case. The issue was whether or not the police officer had a valid reason to stop the defendant’s car. When I asked the officer about the reason for the stop, he told us that the defendant had...
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