By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Defense attorneys at this point, should have at least some familiarity with the Reptile approach that the plaintiffs’ bar is using as a route to persuasion. The idea of framing cases based on personal fear and threats to community safety has made significant inroads in medical negligence, products liability, personal […]
Look Out for the Reptile Mediation Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Americans finally got to see the redacted report from Independent Counsel Robert Mueller last week. The report on Trump campaign issues relating to Russian election interference raised questions in a great variety of categories, one of those categories being the accuracy of Robert Barr’s summary of that report to Congress
Summarize With Care Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: When civil litigation is being discussed by those outside the courtroom and outside the legal field, what stands out is often the perception, at least, of very high damages. The high-dollar figure being awarded, based on a questionable claim, is the poster child for the abuses of litigation. But for
Normalize Your Damages: Five Ways Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: So you have worked up your case for trial and, now the question is, what is the best way to convert all of that factual detail and law into comprehension and persuasion? The answer you’ve probably heard since your first trial advocacy class is, “Tell a story!” And that’s the
Improve Your Storytelling: Seven Ways Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: In one scenario, a worker is on a ladder, painting a ceiling at a local mall. The mall’s management did not order enough safety lines and the worker decides to go ahead and paint without one. After falling and being seriously injured, he sues for damages. The experiment indicates that responsibility
Ask If Your Jurors’ Causal Thinking Is Based on Facts or Possibilities Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: The U.S. midterm elections are now in the rearview mirror, with the ballots counted and the races — most of them at least — settled. But with a mixed result, it is no surprise that we’re hearing complaints from both sides about possible corruption, with liberals focusing on online misinformation,
Expect that Jurors Might Think the System is Rigged Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: The common expression of the recency effect, “Save the best for last,” says that the latter parts of a message will stick in the memory and be ready for later use. The importance of that effect in your trial message has gained some recent and somewhat unexpected support thanks to
Account for Recency in Jury Deliberations Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Your opening statement is a lot of firsts. It’s the first opportunity for your judge or jury to hear the story; the first opportunity to hear a preview of your evidence and argument; the first opportunity to see you on your feet as an advocate for a sustained period of
Open for Business: Top Posts on Opening Statement Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Who is a juror? Experienced legal persuaders know a juror isn’t just a passive receptacle for your arguments, and isn’t just an instrument, a route or obstacle to your preferred verdict in the case. Instead, a juror is fully human, a subject not an object, and possessed of their own particular
Address Identity and Not Just Belief Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Lately, I’ve seen increasing reports of people voluntarily separating themselves from the news. Often, this means taking a break from Facebook and its ubiquitous “Newsfeed.” In other cases, however, it involves people sounding the retreat on watching the news or reading the paper. For some, it means being more selective,
Account for News Fatigue Read More »