Debriefing the key steps in a personal injury trial

Because we still have to sort out a few issues, I can't comment on the details of my last jury trial.

I think it is fair, however, to comment generally on many of the issues that a personal injury lawyer in British Columbia must face.

The Jury

If one starts from the fact that most people, including jurors don't like lawyers. More accurately, they don't like a certain perception that they have of lawyers. That is, the reason that people hate lawyers is because a lawyer twists the truth...a lawyer hides the truth...a lawyer will try to convince you that something is red when everyone knows it is green. I mean, if that is what people think that lawyers do, then who blames them for disliking them.

So, the solution to this problem is simply...don't be that "lawyer". Start with a well thought theory of your case and ensure that you select witnesses that fit into your case. Your gut and your heart should be the organs that dictate your conduct in front of a jury. Your brain, as a lawyer in front of a jury, can get you lost. Your brain is only useful if it follows your gut and your heart.

Theory of your Case

When I describe the trial to my clients, I explain that we are pulling information from their life to tell a story...a story about who they were before the accident, how the accident happened, and how the accident has affected their life.

Judges and juries are looking for a story as well and I tell clients that we need to tell a good story...Rocky...Rocky is a good story. It captured the imagination of everyone who saw it and still today, almost 30 years later is a good story. I always am looking for the emotion that is drawn out in Rocky.

Then again, Wall Street was a good story, but we try to stay away from looking like Gordon Gecko (Michael Douglas's character).