By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: This past Friday I attended a fascinating, albeit a little terrifying, conference for the Civil Jury Project at New York University School of Law. Entitled “The State and Future of Civil Jury Trials,” the conference kicked off what U.S. District Judge William Young called, “The last best hope for the
Fight for the Civil Jury Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: I regularly interview jurors after a trial, and nearly every time, the former jurors that I speak with see their time in the box as a worthwhile experience. Eight million Americans report for jury duty each year, and while there are definitely complaints, a consistent theme is that upon completing their
Support a Jurors’ Bill of Rights Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: What a difference a little bit of time can make. In 1996, same-sex marriage was more likely to be the punchline of a joke than a serious policy position, and support hovered at just 26 percent of the American public. By the time the Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell this
Learn From the Sea Change in Attitudes Towards Gays and Lesbians Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: When it comes to memory and attention, goldfish get a bad rap. It is said that they can only keep a thought in their heads for such a short span that the little plastic castle must be a surprise every time they see it. In truth, research shows that goldfish
Account for a Vanishing Attention Span Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has picked his preferred insult for fellow GOP hopeful Jeb Bush. On at least six occasions over the past few days, the Donald has referred to the Jeb as a “low-energy person.” He doesn’t have strength, passion, or enthusiasm, Trump says, at least not so much
Don’t Be Jeb: A “Low-Energy Person” Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Of course I don’t mean that literally. Given the title and the content of this blog, it would be pretty ironic if I took a dim view of persuasion. But others — consumers, jurors, and persuasive targets of all kinds — do take a dim view of persuasion. They want to
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: At a time of heightened attention toward the disproportionate impact of law enforcement on African-American communities, it matters that prosecutors in many of the same communities appear to be actively limiting the participation of African-Americans on juries. In an illuminating new article, the New York Times reports on a study of strikes
Select Your Jury on Race-Neutral Criteria Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Here is a quick quiz. Who is more likely to guess or speculate about something they don’t know, a novice or a trained expert? While we would like to think that the uninformed novice is more likely to make things up, the surprising answer is that it’s actually the expert.
Experts: Stay in the Box Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: By all accounts available so far, deliberations in the trial of James Holmes, the gunman in the 2012 movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado, ended without conflict, regrets, or recriminations – at least on the part of the jury. But their deliberations didn’t end on a point of agreement either.
Build Resistant Jurors: Lessons from the Aurora Theater Trial Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Pick a trial venue in the United States, grab the average citizen who shows up for jury duty and put them next to the average attorney: What will stand out most immediately are the differences. Comparing education, social class, linguistic ability, habits, and a bevy of other qualities, you might
Be Real: Seven Ways to Humanize Yourself to Your Jury Read More »