From post trial interviews and mock trial research, jurors express what they
determine as harmful mistakes lawyers make at trial. The following newsletters
present sage advice from the jury box, thus In Jurors' Own Words.
The Four Waves of Generations In the Jury Pool
"Each generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it."
George Orwell, English novelist and journalist, b.1903 - d.1950.
Titles of Past Newsletters:
“READING” THE JURY AS EVIDENCE UNFOLDS AT TRIAL
"A blur of blinks, taps,
jiggles, pivots and shifts ... the body language of a man wishing urgently to be elsewhere."
Edward R. Murrow, Television and Radio Journalist, b.1908-d. 1965.
THE JUROR QUESTIONNAIRE SPEAKS VOLUMES
"You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions."
Naguib Mahfouz, Egyptian writer, winner 1988 Nobel Peace Prize for Literature. b. 1911- d. 2006.
The Evolution of a Hung Jury
"…we adhere, as though to a raft, to those ideas which represent our understanding."
John Kenneth Galbraith, Economist, 1958.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:
VOIR DIRE PRESENTS…SOME QUIRKY JURORS
"The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool."
William Shakespeare, 1564-1616, “As You Like It,” Act 5, scene 1.
THE FASCINATION AND FRUSTRATION
OF JUDGING INTERPRETED TESTIMONY AT TRIAL
"Translation is at best an echo."
George Borrow, English author, 1803-1881
VOIR DIRE PARAMETERS SET BY THE COURT;
FOR COUNSEL, HOW TO APPROACH AND CONQUER
"It is the spirit and not the form of law
that keeps justice alive."
Earl Warren, Chief Justice of the
United States Supreme Court,
1953-1969
Jurors React to the
Great Recession
"In prosperity prepare for a change;
in adversity hope for one."
James Burgh, British politician & author
advocating free speech & universal suffrage,
1714-1775
COULD BIRTH ORDER TRAITS INFLUENCE DELIBERATIONS?
"A child of five would understand this.
Send someone to fetch a child of five."
Groucho Marx, American comedian,
1890-1977
Jurors Recognize
Judicial Bias at Trial
"Four things belong to a judge:
To hear courteously, to answer wisely,
to consider soberly and
to decide impartially."
Socrates,
470-399 B.C.
The Many Faces of the Foreperson - Referee, Mediator and Maybe Mom
"No man is wise enough by himself."
Titus Maccius Plautus, Roman playwright,
254 B.C.-184 B.C.
Stereotype Meets Bias In The Courtroom
"I am I, plus my circumstances."
Jose Ortega y Gasset, Spanish philosopher, 1883-1955
Jurors Ask:
"How Do You Determine Damages For Emotion?"
"On the outskirts of every agony sits some observant fellow who points."
Virginia Woolf, English author, 1882-1941
California’s Rural Jurors:
The Red State Region Demystified
"And no less happy he who knows the rural gods."
Virgil, 70-19 B.C. Ecologues, I, l.6
Can We Talk?
A Spirited, First Time
Juror Tells Us What He Really Thinks
"The world is divided into people who
think they are right."
Anonymous
The Echo
Generation:
Hello...Hello, Who Are You?
"This is a generation that cares."
Case Western University student, Cleveland Ohio, October
5, 2004
WE THE
JURY…A Letter to Counsel After Trial
"There is no adequate defense, except
stupidity, against the impact of a new idea."
Percy Williams Bridgeman, American Scientist
Demonstrative
Evidence Using Crayon, Animation, Day in the Life,
Or Subrosa — Jurors
Tell What Works in the Courtroom
"Every picture tells a story, don't it?"
Rod Stewart, British rocker.
Preparing Your Client for
the Rigors of a Jury Trial
"Success is to be measured…by the obstacles which one has
overcome
while trying to succeed."
Booker T. Washington
Jurors Reveal the Defining
Moment in a Trial
"I felt like the moon, the stars, and all the planets had fallen on
me."
Harry S. Truman, 33rd President of the United States
The Anatomy of a
Contentious Jury
"It is impossible to defeat an ignorant man in argument."
William Gibbs McAdoo, American government official.
Jurors’ Observations
About The Poker Game Known As Voir Dire —
Skill, Luck And Charismatic Appeal
"Justice is a machine that, when someone has once given it the
starting
push, rolls on of itself."
John Galsworthy, Justice, Act II.
The Changing Face and Influence of the Asian
Juror
"By nature, men are nearly alike; by practice, they get to be wide
apart."
Confucius: The Confucian Analects, bk 17:2.
The Mock Trial Deliberations and Verdict:
Prophetic or Phony in Relation to the Actual Trial
"Public opinion's always in advance of the law."
John Galsworthy, playwright.
Understanding Generation X Jurors
for a Winning Trial Strategy
"If youth is the season of hope, it is often so only in the sense
that our elders are hopeful about us."
George Eliot, author.
Jurors' Advice for Attorney Etiquette
and Conduct at Trial
"A jury consists of twelve persons chosen to decide
who has the better lawyer."
Robert Frost, American poet.
Jurors' Perceptions of Mistakes, Blunders,
and Other Errors By Trial Lawyers
"Great blunders are often made, like large ropes,
of a multitude of fibers."
Victor Hugo, author.
Post Trial Interviews Give Some Insightful
Opinions about the Trial Process
"Why should there not be a patient confidence in
the ultimate justice of the people?"
Abraham Lincoln, 16th American President.
Classifying Jurors During Voir Dire
for a Successful Verdict
"A companion's words of persuasion are effective."
The Iliad, Book XI, line 793.
Effective Voir Dire Under the Veil
of Public Cynicism
"What is a cynic? A man who knows the price
of everything, and the value of nothing."
Oscar Wilde. Lady Windermere's Fan, (1892), Act III.
Powerful Expert Witnesses at Trial
"Believe one who has proved it. Believe an expert."
Virgil. Aeneid, Book XI, line 283.
