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Keep jurors awake with powerful visuals: jurors shouldn't need a jolt of caffeine to keep from dozing off during your case presentation. Even simple visuals can engage jurors' interest and cement your case themes in their minds - if you use them the right way.

Article Excerpt
It's 2 p.m. The courtroom is hot. Everyone is full from lunch. Up next is your critical witness: your client's main treating physician in videotaped deposition testimony. You wheel out the TV, turn down the lights, and push play.

Within a few minutes every juror's eyes are glazed over and juror No. 1 is snoring. You want to scream at them, "Listen! This is my best evidence! This stuff is really persuasive," but even your eyelids are feeling heavy.

Jurors today come into court expecting the type of high-suspense drama they see on television shows like Law & Order and Boston Legal. They're looking for fast-paced entertainment, but too often they get slow, tedious monotony. The way to keep your jurors awake is to give them what they want: evidence that entertains them.

Even the driest and most boring point can be made persuasive, or at least informative, if you present it visually. Creating visual aids is no longer expensive or difficult. A sole practitioner can now compete with a large, well-funded defense firm.

Easy does it

You don't need an elaborate, high-tech presentation to keep the jurors' attention. Even simple, low-tech options can help you make your case visually, so jurors are more likely to understand and remember the points you make.

Flip charts. Every trial lawyer should bring a flip chart mounted on an easel to the courtroom, along with lots of colored markers. During opening statement, you can write down specific issues you want to emphasize, or summarize what each witness will testify about. At a minimum, you should have a handwritten chart that outlines the issues and your burden.

All cases can be easily divided into three distinct topics: liability, causation, and damages. You can present your opening statement with a written chart that says, for example:

Three issues in this case:

Wrongful conduct: Did Dr. Smith fail to do the right tests on Mrs. Jones?

Cause: Did Dr. Smith's failure to do those tests cause Mrs. Jones's injury?

Damages: What is Mrs. Jones's injury?

A simple visual that outlines the three parts of your case will help the jurors understand the theme of your case and guide them through the testimony you...