With careful preparation, picking a good jury can be like magic.
No part of your lawsuit is more important than voir dire. All facts being the same, you can win or lose simply because of the jurors you select and the ones you fail to remove. Famed trial consultants Lisa Blue and Robert Hirschhorn have mastered the art of selecting a jury, and in Preparing for Voir Dire, they bring you a concise, easy-to-follow road map for planning this essential phase of trial.
This handy guide explains the principles that are vital to preparing for an effective voir dire. It walks you through the process of identifying the beliefs and values at the core of your case, then using that knowledge to reveal prospective jurors' innermost prejudices and biases.
In Preparing for Voir Dire, Blue and Hirschhorn describe:
- How to make a favorable first impression and inspire confidence
- How to create a power statement that persuasively communicates your case theme
- How to draft an effective juror questionnaire
- Techniques for maintaining the panel members' attention and interest
- How to determine what topics to cover and how to best organize your key issues
- When to use open- and closed-ended questions
- How to use scaled questions to your advantage
- Why voir dire is the best time to address your case's weaknesses
- How to deal with time restrictions
- How to use props and visual aids
- Strategies for researching jurors outside the courtroom
- What to wear to avoid alienating the jury
When it comes time to prepare for your next voir dire presentation, turn to Preparing for Voir Dire for straightforward, trusted advice.
- Publisher's Note
- Foreword
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Psychology and Voir Dire Preparation
- Issues to Cover in Voir Dire
- Juror Questionnaires
- Planning the Length of Voir Dire
- Crafting Effective Open-Ended, Closed-Ended, and Scaled Questions
- Preparing Props and Visual Aids
- Researching Potential Jurors Outside the Courtroom
- What to Wear
- Conclusion
- Index
- About the Authors
- CD Content
Also included with book: Sample juror questionnaires, PowerPoint slides, and more available for download
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What Legal Leaders Are Saying
— Morris Dees, founder and Chief Trial Counsel, Southern Poverty Law CenterAmerica’s two best jury experts have written a short, easy-to-read guide that makes jury selection as simple as 1, 2, 3. I have conducted many, many trials over fifty years and would not leave home without it.
— Kurt Arnold, co-owner and founder of Arnold and Itkin, LLP, a civil trial law firm that has achieved record-setting jury verdicts in multiple statesCombine key psychological principles with over sixty years of jury selection experience, and you have Preparing for Voir Dire. This book concisely guides lawyers through the emotional, practical, and legal stages of preparing for jury selection and trains them to start mentally picking a jury as early as the first client meeting. You will never approach jury selection the same after reading this invaluable guide, and you will quickly realize the first and last words that you say to a jury aren’t necessarily the ones that you think you spoke.
— Paul Luvera, member and past president of the Inner Circle of Advocates, member of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial LawyersWhen I ask lawyers what they think is the most difficult part of a trial, the most common answer is jury selection. Here is a step-by-step explanation for doing it right that every lawyer, plaintiff or defendant, will want to own.