By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – The recent trial involved two New York City police officers accused of raping a fashion executive, after helping her out of a taxi at the end of a night of drinking. Without physical evidence (the department’s search of the apartment yielded nothing, and the accuser herself had showered), the case depended […]
Guess You Had to be There (Prefer Present Witnesses Over Absent Ones) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – This blog frequently covers recent psychological or communications research bearing on legal persuasion, and an important question is how well results hold up when leaving the laboratory and entering the courtroom. One example is the phenomenon of damage “anchoring,” or the advantage gained when one side offers an ad damnum number as a starting point for jury deliberations.
When Arguing Damages, “Drop Anchor” Even in Murky Waters Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – For doctors, arguably the areas that require the greatest levels of skill and art lie not in treatment, but in diagnosis. The same goes for lawyers. Encyclopedic legal knowledge and impressive oratorical skills are critical, but probably less important in the long run than a clear-eyed ability to assess
Diagnose Your MedMal Case Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – During a recent trial, a witness was about to leave the stand as a slip of paper with a question emerged from the jury. The note was enough to make the examining counsel’s blood run cold, as the juror asked the witness, “Isn’t [your attorney] signalling you on how to answer by nodding his head to indicate ‘yes,’ or ‘no’?
Remember in Court, If You’re in View, Then You’re on Stage Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – The term “woodshedding” as applied to a witness has a colorful history, starting with the notoriety of a small structure just outside the colonial courthouse in White Plains, New York, where attorneys would meet with witnesses just before coming in to court. As used today, “woodshedding” basically means telling witnesses, fact
Keep Your Witness Out of the Woodshed Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – With Standard & Poor’s recent decision to deny the U.S. a AAA credit rating, many Americans are feeling a little downgraded about now. For most of us, I can hope, that is a temporary feeling. But for others, especially in these economic times, it is a more constant aspect of their lives. These Americans,
Beware of Jurors Who Feel Downgraded Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – Litigators like to see themselves as silver-tongued persuaders, but in an age in which fewer than one in fifty suits are resolved in trial, they may find that the negotiation skills of Donald Trump come to matter more than the rhetorical skills of F. Lee Bailey. And research is
When You Press the Negotiations, Pause the Persuasion Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – “Well…let me just throw a number out to get us rolling: Five million dollars!” (Recent mock juror quote) Juror damage awards can seem erratic and inexplicable, not only to the public, but to experienced litigators as well. Particularly when jurors are valuing something other than a concrete expense by assessing non-economic
Get the Gist of How Jurors Decide Damage Numbers Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – The old Rolling Stones song notwithstanding, it is likely that most Americans have very little sympathy for the devilish war Congress has waged over raising the debt limit. This impasse, like most intractable disagreements, can be seen as a failure of empathy. In this case, a failure of each
Sympathy for the Devil, but Empathy for Your Judge Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – As we get to the final post in this series, astute readers will have no doubt noticed one claim that we haven’t made: namely, that graphics will win your case. By themselves, they won’t. That is what we found in our experiment focusing on the reactions of 1,375 mock jurors.
Show, Don’t Just Tell: Part 5, Caution (Persuasion Strategies Visual Persuasion Study) Read More »