- The Wired Juror, Unplugged
“Research demonstrates that noncompliance with restrictions on Internet access is a potential problem across almost all age groups." - Streamlining Juror Research
“Public records, Google, and social media sites have become common sources to gather information about prospective jurors to assess bias in addition to what is learned in voir dire or when voir dire conditions are limited-such as in federal court. This research can be labor-intensive and expensive. However, technology can streamline the process by doing these searches in a matter of minutes.” - Jury Selection and Damages during the Coronavirus Pandemic
“While it is too soon to know how these changes (the Covid-19 pandemic) will affect juror decision-making and verdicts, we know that plaintiffs’ attorneys can strengthen their cases by recognizing these changes and embracing society’s shared experiences in this time of crisis. This pandemic provides opportunities to explore critical topics in voir dire to assist in evaluating jurors for peremptory and cause challenges.” - Jury Pool Composition Issues: Who is Missing and Why?
“We in California live in a highly diverse state, in an increasingly diverse nation, and yet jury pools often do not adequately reflect the population.” “Jury composition studies are painstaking but an important tool for investigating whether there is a systemic problem in the manner in which the pool is assembled.” - Getting the Answers you need in Jury Selection
“Since jury selection involves interacting with a group of people who would generally rather remain silent, sending the right signal about your expectations can make a critical difference in getting the information you need to assess juror bias.” “Knowing when and why to use “how many” vs. “do any” will help you accomplish your goals in jury selection.” - Practice Tips: Death Penalty
“Death qualification eliminates a broad swath of jurors from the pool; jurors who have come to believe that the death penalty is not without bias, not just, nor fair, brutal in its application, and irreversibly error prone.” - Mini Openings for Jury Selection
“A mini-opening is a brief statement – usually in the range of 5-7 minutes – that describes the context of the dispute, provides a quick overview of the key issues in the case, and gives a “50,000 foot” description of what the jurors will be asked to decide. The basic concept is quite simple: when jurors are given a coherent statement about the case at the outset of voir dire they can do a better job of identifying the issues that may make it difficult for them to be impartial and of revealing any prior attitudes or experiences related to the specific issues in dispute.” - Susan Macpherson on Damages in Commercial Cases
“In commercial cases, when it comes to damages, the hurdles are different. In a personal injury case, jurors are often reluctant to "make the plaintiff rich." In commercial cases, they do not care so much about that. They are more concerned with whether or not there is really a need for compensation: Did someone do something that he should pay money for having done? Was there really harm?” - Openings and Closings in Complex Commercial Disputes: The Human Factor
“Opening is not the case. Opening is just the bare bones story – the 101 level of the case.” “When I talk to the jurors, they often tell me that by closing they already know what the attorneys are going to say. They are not looking for anything new, but they may be looking for help with how to decide the dispute.” - Five Steps to Persuasion in Opening Statements
“How do you, as the attorney, persuade the jurors in such a way that they persuade each other to decide in your favor? Nearly 50 years ago, researchers at Yale identified the five steps in the persuasion process: attention, comprehension, acceptance, retention, and action. You must have the jurors' attention, they must understand your message, they must accept or agree with it, remember it, and act on it in the desired fashion in deliberations. How do these factors play out on a practical level in preparing an opening?” - The Case for Meaningful Voir Dire on Race and Sexual Orientation Bias
“Recent United States Supreme Court decisions and some state appellate decisions have greatly restricted attorney-conducted voir dire and the scope of the inquiry. However, at the same time the courts have expanded the prohibition on the discriminatory use of peremptory challenges. This article suggests ways in which this line of cases, along with supporting social science research, can be used to justify and expand meaningful voir dire.“ - Practical Tips for Jury Selection in Civil Rights Cases: Bad Attitudes and Other Common Problems
- Tools to Keep Jurors Engaged
“Tools that can help jurors start out and remain fully engaged in their task are sometimes called jury trial innovations. They include a "mini-opening" at the beginning of voir dire; preliminary instructions on the law that include a definition of the claims and relevant legal concepts before jurors hear evidence; the opportunity to take notes and use trial notebooks; interim summations; and-most controversial the chance to ask questions.”
