By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Do our good intentions save us from the bad impacts of our acts? This past spring, that question was addressed musically via the song, “Accidental Racist.” Pairing up country star Brad Paisley and rapper LL Cool J, the song centers on a dialogue between a Southern white man and an urban […]
See Intentions as Well as Impacts Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: In a recent piece in Forbes online, Roger Dooley tells his own story of a spectacular market research failure. His company was involved in metal sales and competed in a market with an overall price similarity. Thinking that their product had some quality advantages over the competition, the company wanted
Avoid Market Research Mistakes in Your Mock Trial Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Litigators tend to implicitly believe that evidence can overcome attitudes and bias. Yes, it may be an uphill battle against a judge or juror’s hardened beliefs, but once they pay attention to the evidence, we will be able to change their minds, right? Even as we strike some, the faith
Expect Strong Beliefs to Cloud Analytical Ability Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: What do scholastic debaters do after they graduate? Based on my own social circle, they either teach others to be debaters, or they become litigators. It is by no means a universal prerequisite, but it is common enough that within any gathering of trial lawyers, at least some of them,
Know the Difference Between Debate and Trial Advocacy Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: When someone causes you some kind of harm, say they step on your foot, they’ll say “I’m sorry.” When you’ve experienced some kind of misfortune or loss, like a death in the family, people will again say, “I’m sorry.” In that latter example, they aren’t (we presume) admitting that they
Show You’re Sorry, Even When You’re Not at Fault Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: It is one of the most enshrined principles of human communication: The audience and the speaker should be locked in eye contact in order for the best persuasion to take place. Public speaking teachers give that advice to students and jury consultants give that advice to attorneys and witnesses: Look
Don’t Worry About the Jury’s Eye Contact (Worry About Your Own) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: This is one of those times I expect my title to be met with a, “Well, no kidding.” Attorneys and expert witnesses know the demands of conveying often complex methods and conclusions and know the drill: simplify, simplify, simplify. So lawyers and witnesses know to keep it basic. But do
Experts: Use Small Words Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: In a recent post, I wrote about a jury’s reason for decision, as well as the formal and informal ways of finding that out. In response, a reader raised a very important issue. “Jurors are only going to tell you what they consciously think are the reasons for their decision,”
Dig Deeper When Interviewing Jurors Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Litigators have many options for using on-screen visuals in opening statement. They can fire up the Elmo document camera, they can call up and highlight documents using TrialDirector or Sanction, or they can do what savvy trial lawyers are increasingly doing: using PowerPoint slides. Here at Persuasion Strategies, we used
Use PowerPoint (For Both Credibility and Comprehension) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: A significant chunk of a witness’s preparation for deposition is going to be case-specific, and an even larger portion should focus on direct practice. But at least some of it will nearly always involve conveying the basic principles of good testimony: the do’s and don’t’s that apply to all deponents.
Give Your Witness a Good Foundation: A Review of “The Perfect Witness” Online Training Read More »