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JurEcon, Inc.
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Trial Strategy & Jury Research As all attorneys know, prospective jurors often enter the courtroom with set of well-developed biases and predispositions. Research on attitudes and attitudes change clearly shows that prior attitudes, prejudices, and beliefs can strongly affect a juror's ability to rationally evaluate the evidence presented. Thus, even the most persuasively argued case may fall upon deaf ears. Unfortunately, these influential attitudes are often well-hidden and may be unknown even to the juror. JurEcon's Cooperative Juror Selection© process develops social and psychological indicators of those jurors who are likely to respond favorably or unfavorably to the salient points in a case. Attorneys can use these indicators every effectively in the voir dire process to maximize the chance of empanelling a receptive jury. A systematic procedure developed by JurEcon, Inc. Cooperative Juror Selection© utilizes a multi-step process for increasing our client's likelihood of a successful outcome at trial. Any or all of the following steps are followed, each separately budgeted, depending on the goals and objectives of the attorney and the needs of the case:
Witness Preparation Witness preparation is an integral part of trial strategy - a seamless process of developing the overall structure of the case and the major themes which potential jurors are likely to accept and prioritize in their deliberations. The personalities and credibility of key witnesses will be perceived within the larger context of the central themes and critical facts that the jury will be hearing and seeing. It is not a matter of modifying a witness’ personality to be more pleasing or inoffensive to a jury, although such advice may be helpful and reassuring. Basic personality attributes are not especially malleable and certainly not on short notice. It is more important and effective to help the central witnesses understand how their testimony fits into the overall thematic structure of the case, which includes profiling of jurors’ likely interests and biases, the conduct of the voir dire, and the presentation of the case to the jury. The approach requires a good deal of cooperation between the jury consultant, the clients, and the attorneys. It is a team effort. The purpose is to provide the witnesses with a sense of context and direction when taking the stand to testify as to what has happened. They need to understand how the attorneys on both sides will seek to use their testimony to affect juror perceptions. And a witness is assisted in being more persuasive by understanding the relationship between those perceptions and the major themes that each side will use in the trial. In this approach, deposition testimony is an invaluable tool for witness preparation. JurEcon’s expert reviews and critiques the relevant depositions with the attorneys to reach a common understanding of the likely trial strategy of the other side. JurEcon’s expert then conducts a detailed review with the clients and other key witnesses who have been deposed to show them where the opposition is trying to lead them. A witness’s credibility as well as the accuracy of detail and recollection, is improved by understanding how the disputed and undisputed facts in the case will be presented by each side and that a particular question is not an isolated event. In all of this, the overall thematic structure of the case provides the critical context for both the witness and the jury.
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