Only recently, we had a 24-7 news bubble on the coronavirus pandemic, and it didn’t seem like anything could break it. Now, however, our television screens are filled with scenes of protest and violent confrontation. The...more
6/5/2020
/ Bias ,
Defense Strategies ,
Juror ,
Jury Selection ,
Jury Trial ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Political Parties ,
Protests ,
Race Discrimination ,
Race Relations ,
Trial Practice Guidance
Might a fear-based strategy have greater purchase in the present pandemic climate? People are certainly feeling scared and vulnerable these days. Even as states begin to relax the coronavirus stay-at-home restrictions, the...more
5/15/2020
/ Bias ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Court Closures ,
Defense Strategies ,
Government Lockdown ,
Juror ,
Jury Trial ,
Litigation Strategies ,
State of Emergency ,
Trial Attorneys ,
Trial Practice Guidance
As our lives have shifted, so have our attitudes, and the current social context may be widening the distance between ordinary Americans and large corporations. It was never a close connection to begin with, of course, since...more
After a brief time when it seemed that Americans were coming together in favor of social isolation to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, it seems that our response is now getting more polarized by the day. As the...more
4/24/2020
/ Bias ,
Business Closures ,
Climate Change ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Expert Witness ,
Jury Selection ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Political Parties ,
Protests ,
Scientific Evidence ,
Social Distancing ,
Trump Administration
What’s in a name? In the current pandemic, do you prefer to call it the “coronavirus,” or the “Chinese-” or “Wuhan-Virus”? In addition to that choice being a pretty good litmus test on your partisan leanings, the push toward...more
It is something you sometimes hear at election time: The names you’ve never heard on the state and local sections of the ballot actually have a greater effect on your life. But our attention is usually focused on the top of...more
As the national and international coronavirus crisis is still moving toward its peak, one of the few bright spots has been hearing about the daily acts of support for the many medical professionals who are on the front lines...more
When Trump associate Roger Stone was sentenced last month for obstruction of Congress and witness tampering, there was some pushback from media, Stone’s legal team, and the President himself targeting the jury’s foreperson, a...more
3/6/2020
/ Bias ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defense Strategies ,
Juror ,
Jury Selection ,
Jury Trial ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Questionnaires ,
Social Media ,
Trial Practice Guidance ,
Trial Preparation ,
Trump Administration ,
Voir Dire
Imagine that you have in front of you a Bernie Sanders supporter or a Donald Trump supporter. Go ahead and pick whichever one of those is opposite your own political views. Now, convince them that they’re wrong. Assuming that...more
Litigators are used to arguing, refuting, and persuading. When it comes to selecting jurors, they’re also used to uncovering bias. But what is “debiasing”? While my spellchecker continues to reject the term, academics have...more
Harvey Weinstein goes to trial this week. Out of approximately eighty women accusing the former Hollywood mogul of sexual misconduct over the past few decades, two assault cases will be heard by a jury this week in Manhattan....more
1/6/2020
/ #MeToo ,
Bias ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defense Strategies ,
Jury Selection ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Questionnaires ,
Scandals ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Social Media ,
Trial Practice Guidance ,
Trial Preparation ,
Voir Dire
When we engage in arguments, perhaps on social media or even around the table at Christmas dinner, it is easy to notice that there is something different about those at the extremes. Extremists are so filled with confidence...more
The arc of history has been moving, albeit in fits and starts, toward gender equality. In the business world, and a little less in the legal world, we see more female leaders at the top. But once a woman reaches that point,...more
12/6/2019
/ Bias ,
CEOs ,
Defense Strategies ,
Diversity ,
Ethics ,
Gender Equity ,
Jury Trial ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Trial Practice Guidance ,
Woman Board Members ,
Women-Owned Businesses
You’re heading to trial and there is one last hurdle: the mandatory settlement conference that your judge is gunning for. He has signaled at every opportunity that he thinks this is a case the parties should resolve prior to...more
Medical practitioners know that, for all its wonders, modern medicine is still a matter of chances not guarantees. In other words, in practice, medical interventions are often a matter of improving the patient’s chances at...more
The trial consulting field seems to fly mostly under the radar. As a part of the attorney’s confidential work product, our role in conducting research, preparing witnesses, and helping to advise on jury selection is not...more
6/10/2019
/ Bias ,
Defense Strategies ,
Diversity ,
Jury Consultants ,
Jury Selection ,
Jury Trial ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Peremptory Challenges ,
Trial Practice Guidance ,
Trial Preparation ,
Voir Dire ,
Work-Product Doctrine
Some feel that the jury system has a fatal flaw. And that flaw is the jurors. They’re human, and that means they carry a wide variety of biases. Based on their experiences, their outlooks, the information they’re exposed to,...more
At This stage, we are used to polarization in politics, with Red- and Blue-America divided on nearly every policy issue we can imagine. But there is a growing realization that this polarization isn’t just politics. Instead,...more
It is well known that some people have it in for corporations, especially when these large companies find themselves on the defense side in a courtroom. Our own research has shown that a negative attitude is very common, with...more
When Donald Trump finally gave his State of the Union Address on Tuesday, he spoke to a record number of elected women in Congress. And currently, no fewer than five high-profile female candidates have already declared to run...more
2/7/2019
/ #MeToo ,
Bias ,
Defense Strategies ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Juror ,
Jury Trial ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Sex Discrimination ,
State of the Union ,
Trump Administration ,
Women in the Law
Across the country, police departments are moving toward greater use of individual officer body cams. The small, lightweight cameras are used to record police encounters from the officer’s perspective and can become evidence....more
It has become commonplace to note that, as a country, we seem to be more divided than ever – divided on politics, education, rural-urban living, religion, you name it. But topics relating to the ways we generate energy and...more
12/21/2018
/ Bias ,
Coal ,
Defense Strategies ,
Green Energy ,
Juror ,
Legal Research ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Renewable Energy ,
Solar Energy
Rhetorically, a focus on enemies is pretty important. Sometimes they’re invented, and sometimes they’re based on a fundamental truth that is then enhanced and exaggerated. In terms of our concepts and communications, a moral...more
12/10/2018
/ Bias ,
Civil Liability ,
Corporate Structures ,
Defense Strategies ,
Employment Litigation ,
Juror ,
Jury Trial ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Patent Litigation ,
Product Defects ,
Trial Practice Guidance ,
Trial Preparation ,
Voir Dire
Once you’re aware of “dehumanization” as a feature of communication, you start to see it everywhere. Characterizing a group as less than human in one or more ways is often part of the rhetorical landscape on the most divisive...more
The U.S. midterm elections are now in the rearview mirror, with the ballots counted and the races — most of them at least — settled. But with a mixed result, it is no surprise that we’re hearing complaints from both sides...more