Comments on: How to detect “non-answers” during cross-examination http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/trial-skills/cross-examination/how-to-detect-non-answers-during-cross-examination/ Trial lawyers, discover how to persuade jurors and win your next jury trial. You will learn valuable tips for improving your jury selection, opening statement, direct examination, cross-examination, and closing arguments. Sun, 15 Jan 2012 06:33:32 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.4 By: How to Detect Non-Answers http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/trial-skills/cross-examination/how-to-detect-non-answers-during-cross-examination/comment-page-1/#comment-12238 How to Detect Non-Answers Tue, 15 Jun 2010 13:24:24 +0000 http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/?p=297#comment-12238 [...] I wanted to point you to yet another great blog post over at the Winning Trial Advocacy Tips blog: How to Detect “Non-Answers” During Cross-Examination — although these principles work equally well outside the courtroom in everyday life as [...] [...] I wanted to point you to yet another great blog post over at the Winning Trial Advocacy Tips blog: How to Detect “Non-Answers” During Cross-Examination — although these principles work equally well outside the courtroom in everyday life as [...]

]]> By: Kalpin Shah http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/trial-skills/cross-examination/how-to-detect-non-answers-during-cross-examination/comment-page-1/#comment-12103 Kalpin Shah Wed, 05 May 2010 13:07:58 +0000 http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/?p=297#comment-12103 I second Cassandra's question... I hear its a frequent concern for many lawyers. I second Cassandra’s question… I hear its a frequent concern for many lawyers.

]]> By: John Day http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/trial-skills/cross-examination/how-to-detect-non-answers-during-cross-examination/comment-page-1/#comment-12089 John Day Thu, 29 Apr 2010 01:59:31 +0000 http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/?p=297#comment-12089 Excellent job. I refer to your work often on my blog, www.dayontorts.com. You are one of the few people who write on this subject that actually understand it and are able to articulate what you know. Excellent job. I refer to your work often on my blog, http://www.dayontorts.com.
You are one of the few people who write on this subject that actually understand it and are able to articulate what you know.

]]> By: Cassandra Snapp http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/trial-skills/cross-examination/how-to-detect-non-answers-during-cross-examination/comment-page-1/#comment-12088 Cassandra Snapp Tue, 27 Apr 2010 13:11:47 +0000 http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/?p=297#comment-12088 Wonderful article. I don't know if you've done this before, but I'd like to see an article on how to handle judges who make similarly evasive non-rulings. That is, when the opponent objects, instead of saying "overruled" or "sustained," the judge will say something like "move along, counselor." Did the judge sustain the objection or overrule it? If you assume the judge sustained, then argue this as error on appeal, you lose, because the judge did not actually make a ruling, so it's not preserved for review. So how do you pin a judge down? Wonderful article. I don’t know if you’ve done this before, but I’d like to see an article on how to handle judges who make similarly evasive non-rulings. That is, when the opponent objects, instead of saying “overruled” or “sustained,” the judge will say something like “move along, counselor.” Did the judge sustain the objection or overrule it? If you assume the judge sustained, then argue this as error on appeal, you lose, because the judge did not actually make a ruling, so it’s not preserved for review. So how do you pin a judge down?

]]> By: Kalpin Shah http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/trial-skills/cross-examination/how-to-detect-non-answers-during-cross-examination/comment-page-1/#comment-12086 Kalpin Shah Mon, 26 Apr 2010 21:18:14 +0000 http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/?p=297#comment-12086 Prof. Wilcox: I just did a trial yesterday [mock trial -- we got our acquittal]. I've been studying your site & your youtube videos (esp. on cross-exam) and they have been immensely helpful. I combined your fundamentals [eg. one fact per question, leading question only, short powerful questions etc.] with my class professor techniques [eg. circling the wagon before hitting the target, general to narrow etc.] That stuff is really cool -- I mean its smart & effective-- the type of wisdom you don't get from average trial lawyers. Here are a few examples of non-answers I faced during my trial yesterday & how I handled them: ----------- Q: you req. 8pts of similarity before you'll call it a match right? Ans: well some Fingerprint technicians will call it a match w. 7pts. Q: Too bad non of them are here testifying like you are... you req. an 8 pt. match right? Ans. Yes. -------------- Q: So anything below 8 pts of similarity is not a match right? Ans: If you are using an 8pt standard. Q: Aren't we using an 8pt std. in this case? Ans. yes Q: so its not a match here right? Ans. yes. -------- Q: so the fingerprint is not a match with Mr. Delaney right? Ans. Well, we can't rule him out either. Q: just like how you can't rule out all those other employee from the jewelry store? [i had already est. that previously]. Prof. Wilcox:
I just did a trial yesterday [mock trial -- we got our acquittal]. I’ve been studying your site & your youtube videos (esp. on cross-exam) and they have been immensely helpful. I combined your fundamentals [eg. one fact per question, leading question only, short powerful questions etc.] with my class professor techniques [eg. circling the wagon before hitting the target, general to narrow etc.] That stuff is really cool — I mean its smart & effective– the type of wisdom you don’t get from average trial lawyers.

Here are a few examples of non-answers I faced during my trial yesterday & how I handled them:

———–
Q: you req. 8pts of similarity before you’ll call it a match right?
Ans: well some Fingerprint technicians will call it a match w. 7pts.
Q: Too bad non of them are here testifying like you are… you req. an 8 pt. match right?
Ans. Yes.

————–

Q: So anything below 8 pts of similarity is not a match right?
Ans: If you are using an 8pt standard.
Q: Aren’t we using an 8pt std. in this case?
Ans. yes
Q: so its not a match here right?
Ans. yes.

——–

Q: so the fingerprint is not a match with Mr. Delaney right?
Ans. Well, we can’t rule him out either.
Q: just like how you can’t rule out all those other employee from the jewelry store? [i had already est. that previously].

]]> By: Kyair Butts http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/trial-skills/cross-examination/how-to-detect-non-answers-during-cross-examination/comment-page-1/#comment-12081 Kyair Butts Sun, 25 Apr 2010 17:22:10 +0000 http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/?p=297#comment-12081 I this was a particularly good post. Again, I know that I compete in mock trial, but it's amazing how many witnesses avoid questions with these non-answers. I appreciate that you gave a variety of situations wherein a non-answer is possible to come up. Besides practice and actually listening, is there any way to get better at listening for non-answers? Is that something that you go into court prepared for, a battle with a witness to extract the pertinent information assuming he/she will give non-answers? The last thing I was curious about was overall appearance. Do you get frustrated asking a question over again? Does your tone need to change? Is this different from how you could normally control the courtroom? Thanks for the help. I this was a particularly good post. Again, I know that I compete in mock trial, but it’s amazing how many witnesses avoid questions with these non-answers. I appreciate that you gave a variety of situations wherein a non-answer is possible to come up. Besides practice and actually listening, is there any way to get better at listening for non-answers? Is that something that you go into court prepared for, a battle with a witness to extract the pertinent information assuming he/she will give non-answers? The last thing I was curious about was overall appearance. Do you get frustrated asking a question over again? Does your tone need to change? Is this different from how you could normally control the courtroom? Thanks for the help.

]]> By: Clayton Mitchell http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/trial-skills/cross-examination/how-to-detect-non-answers-during-cross-examination/comment-page-1/#comment-12077 Clayton Mitchell Fri, 23 Apr 2010 14:51:41 +0000 http://www.trialtheater.com/wordpress/?p=297#comment-12077 This type of question and non-answering happens every Sunday morning on the "talking head" shows. It is amazing to me that the reporters, more often than not, accept the non-answers as the answer to their question with no follow up question to pin them down. I end up yelling at my television when that happens. This is a good excersize in learing to recognize the "non-answer" answers. This type of question and non-answering happens every Sunday morning on the “talking head” shows. It is amazing to me that the reporters, more often than not, accept the non-answers as the answer to their question with no follow up question to pin them down. I end up yelling at my television when that happens. This is a good excersize in learing to recognize the “non-answer” answers.

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