By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: “Your honor, this pattern of making a list for those deemed “Naughty” and “Nice” has the clear and foreseeable consequence of disparate treatment – namely, coal and switches – for those in the former cateorgy, and can only be seen as a persistent (annual) and intentional (he ‘checked it twice’) pattern resulting in the intentional infliction […]
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Speaking of faces, it turns out that Facebook is planning to sue Mark Zuckerberg. No, not that Mark Zuckerberg, the iconic founder of the world’s social media homepage, but an Israeli businessman, formerly named Rotem Guez, who legally changed his name to Mark Zuckerberg in order to support a business
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Most litigators now understand that their case fares better when it is framed as a story. And everyone knows that a good story always carries a point or a moral. Even information that follows a narrative structure (e.g., I went to a store, then bought broccoli, then returned home) isn’t received
Find the “Universal Morality” in Your Case Story Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: If that commercial for the knife set just laid it all out at the start, it would sound like this: “Okay, here is the deal, you get the knives, the storage block, an extra set of steak knives, free sharpening for life, and free shipping if you call in the next hour.”
But Wait, There’s More: Build Your Case Over Time, Instead of All at Once Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: It is an unusual research finding, but it explains a great deal of what we see in mock trials and litigation outcomes: Just as with naughty pupils, bad acts receive more attention than good acts. For both the plaintiff, as well as the defendant, juries and other fact-finders are likely
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Sometimes you come across a document that challenges your view of basic human goodness. The stomach-churning Grand Jury Report relating to the Pennsylvania State football scandal is one such document. What stands out, based on the allegations, is just how many times former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky was caught. In locker rooms, workout
Define “Reasonable Person” As Your Jurors’ Idealized Version of Themselves Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Predicting is tough, and can be even tougher when we don’t believe the limits of our own predictive abilities. Daniel Kahneman, a giant in the psychology world, recently wrote in the New York Times Magazine about an odd task that neatly parallels an attorney’s challenge in case assessment. Dr. Kahneman’s job as a British army
Predict With Care: Adapt to Overconfidence in Case Assessment Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Here is some practical advice for capital defense jury selection that carries important implications for civil cases as well. It is well established that the process of “death qualifying” a capital jury, by weeding out those have a moral or other objection to the death penalty, ends up biasing the panel
“Life Qualify” Your Capital Jury (And Balance Out Your Civil Panel Too) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: I’ve sometimes noticed during jury selection, that attorneys are prone to like the likable. They want to believe that the panelist who appears to be well-connected, sociable, and friendly is more likely to be kind and empathetic toward their case and their client. This preference might be understandable, though it overlooks the possibility that the sociable
Don’t Mistake Sociability for Empathy Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: I’ve written about presidential aspirant Herman Cain, and his effective use of the “9-9-9” mnemonic, but more recently, Mr. Cain might be having more troubling memories. Specifically, he might be thinking, “If only I had an iron clad non disclosure agreement in my sexual harassment settlements….” While Mr. Cain’s predicament is unique, what is
Help Your Fact Finders Think About What Might Have Been Read More »