The Trial Practice Tips Weblog

An Unplanned Break for Television

At Abnormal Use, Jim Dedman asks, "Why is discovery rarely, if ever, depicted on lawyer television shows?"--

When is the last time you saw a witness being deposed on a lawyer television show? When is the last time you saw a young associate in a frightful warehouse in the middle of nowhere performing document review? When is the last time you saw a lawyer responding to discovery requests or lodging objections to same? Is it that such tasks are not cinematic in nature? Surely, that’s not it.

I think Dedman is correct when he surmises that the people who write television shows don't have the legal experience from which to create scenes about discovery. (He has some other theories too--read his post.)

On the other hand, didn't L.A. Law have some scenes involving document review? And depositions too? But that was years ago. I was in law school and barely remember (although I do remember, unaccountably, the rule against perpetuities.)

Movies, of course, are a different matter. There's lots of discovery in the movies. Not that the movies get it right. See, e.g., a post I did once about Ron Motley as depicted in The Insider, "'Wipe that Smirk Off Your Face!' And Other Things Plaintiffs' Lawyers Don't Really Say to Opposing Counsel."

But how to solve the discovery-on-TV conundrum? I think Jim Dedman could solve it himself by producing or writing for TV. That would be a lawyer show I'd actually watch!

When An Opposing Counsel Is Ruining Your Day

From Lawyerist.com: "Don’t Let Opposing Counsel Get You Down," by Sybil Dunlop--

As a newer lawyer, I am delighted to find my day to day work invigorating and exciting. In fact, only one aspect of lawyering gets me down—unpleasant interactions with opposing counsel.

In the full post, there are some good tips for countering bad behavior from opposing counsel--recommended . . .

Plugging a Post at My Other Blog

New at Beyond the Underground: "How to Flatter a Judge: A Guide for Ambitious Lawyers Who Want to Get Ahead (Part 1 of 2)"

UPDATE: And here's Part 2.

A Post About Client Service

See "The 12 Rules of Client Service," from J.D. Hull at What About Clients?, which begins --

The goal of the ... 12 rules is to align the interests of clients/customers and service providers to the fullest extent possible. The rules are not perfect, and can be improved. But this model works--if you work at it. If you follow these rules by building a disciplined culture at your shop where they are enforced and kept alive, your clients and firm both benefit as you go along.

Required reading for all lawyers!

A Few Notes on Lawyers and Depression

From Law Practice Today: "A Lawyer's Tale: Recovering from Depression," by Keith Anderson.

Plus, more from my other blog, Beyond the Underground: an old but still extremely popular guest post from Raymond Ward: "Depression, The Lawyers' Epidemic: How You Can Recognize the Signs."

Litigators: Excel at the Basics

Here's a good post from Max Kennerly at Litigation & Trial: "How To Excel At The Basics As A Young Litigator," which includes a list of five "basics" and tips for excelling at each.

During a Trial: What's Important and What's Not?

From the Wisconsin Law Journal: "Trial Techniques: What lawyers should (and shouldn’t) worry about in the courtroom," by Alexandra Rudolph--

As the owner of a Chicago jury research firm, I’ve seen a number of lawyers make the same mistakes and misjudgments countless times over the years.

In my experience, attorneys spend too much time worrying about things they can’t control, such as opinions expressed during jury selection, and too little time considering how their trial team appears to the court or what a judge might find most helpful.

Rudolph goes on to list "things to stop worrying about," with explanation--

• Whether jurors will be turned off by use of technology;
• How the jury will react to a witness who seems to have been prepared to testify by a lawyer;
• Whether comments made during jury selection have tainted the jury;
• How a jury will respond to an expert who makes small admissions that seem to bolster the other side's case.

What's really worth worrying about? According to Rudolph--

• Technology misfires;
• A disjointed trial team;
• Whether you have sufficiently educated the judge;
• Whether you have clearly communicated with the jury throughout the trial.

You can read Rudolph's full article, with its explanatory text, at the link.

Free Law-Related Articles, Many Excerpted from Books

For free law-related articles from James Publishing, just follow the link and browse the list of articles on the right side, including--

• Residential slip-and-falls, with deposition outlines;
• Auto accident depositions;
• Model interrogatories; and
• Employment evidence.

You'll also find free form collections (e.g., employment discrimination and defense doctor depositions), free pamphlets, and free mini-courses.

James Publishing also publishes my book, Deposition Checklists and Strategies.

Spotting Liars: A New Technique

Trial lawyers are in the business of spotting liars, but I'm not sure whether this new approach, as described in Psychology Today, will have any practical applications in depositions or at trial. But here's the link all the same:"If You Want to Catch a Liar, Make Him Draw." You can judge for yourself.

Related posts at Trial Practice Tips:

1. Practice Tip: Assume Your Deposition Witness Is Lying

2. Cross-Examining the Liar at Trial: Two Absolute Prerequisites

3. Deposition Tip: Help with Sniffing Out the Liars

Illinois News: New Rules of Evidence

The Illinois Supreme Court has approved Illinois Rules of Evidence, which will be effective January 1, 2011.

Some sources for learning about the Illinois Rules of Evidence--

• From the Illinois Supreme Court's website, the new Illinois Rules of Evidence;
• From Illinois Lawyer Now: "Supreme Court Approves Illinois Rules of Evidence."