By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: These are stressful times, and there are many reasons to expect that your jury pool in the near future is going to be a little stressed out. In the article, “The Pandemic Juror,” (Wilson 2020) a University of Tennessee law professor noted what many of us have observed: Jurors who […]
Understand Juror Anxiety Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: The Reptile approach of trying plaintiffs’ cases by framing them in terms of personal safety is no longer a new idea. Plaintiffs’ attorneys are also less likely to treat that approach as a cure-all in every trial. But the Reptile’s themes and techniques are still there, having snaked their way
Confront the Reptile in Jury Selection Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: It has been a tough year for science. On the social-science front, it seems that we have entered a phase where no one believes the polls. To conservative Trump supporters, the consensus of data showing the President well behind his Democratic challenger, even in Trump’s must-win swing states, just reflects
Address Science Denialism Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: It is obvious that we live in a time of extraordinary polarization, and we are in the midst of an election that is bringing that schism into even starker contrast. Red and blue Americans differ in our demographics, our education, our policy commitments, and where we live. But perhaps we
Mind the Meta-narratives in Election 2020 Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Well, Wednesday’s Vice Presidential debate was more civil than the top-of-the-card match last week. It offered a more substantive comparison of positions, with the candidates on both sides looking mature, reasonable, and even presidential. That may be a good thing considering that the the President and his challenger are 74
Note the Challenges of a Black Female Advocate: Kamala Harris’ Debate Dilemma Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: So Donald Trump now has the coronavirus. As of press time for this blog post, he is fighting the illness from the Presidential Suite at Walter Reed Medical Center. It is news that struck many as both surprising and predictable: Surprising in the way that it has upended a campaign
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: It is worth remembering: The reasons that we have enforceable rules for a courtroom is to avoid the spectacle that Americans witnessed in the first Presidential debate this year. Commentators across the political spectrum variously called the match-up between President Donald Trump and former Vice-President Joe Biden “unwatchable,” a “debacle,”
Thank God for Format: A Lesson from the Presidential “Debate” Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Here is a scenario that might be playing out in various forms around the country: A judge looks at her increasingly crowded docket during the coronavirus pandemic and thinks, “Well, I’m doing professional meetings on Zoom every day. Why couldn’t I move some of these trials by putting all or
Don’t Assume a Civil Zoom Trial Creates Reversible Error Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Attorneys know the feeling: With some of your witnesses, you just want to keep it simple, encourage them to keep their heads down, and limit the possible damage. With any luck, they’ll get through it with minimal damage to your case. But for other witnesses, testimony is an opportunity. The
Assess Whether Your Witness Is Able to Counterpunch Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: When preparing a witness, there can sometimes be a strong impulse to say, “Just answer the question.” That impulse comes from an appropriate desire to keep things simple, and to keep the witness from wandering or waffling. But it can be bad advice. The choice to just answer the question on
Witnesses: Answer Both the Language of the Question and Its Implication Read More »