By: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – For all the careful attention and planning that goes into a good opening statement story, and a strong closing argument structure, the rebuttal can end up sounding like an afterthought — especially when it is an afterthought. Composed on the fly while listening to your opponent’s argument, your rebuttal can often be reduced to […]
Avoid the “And Another Thing…” Style in Rebuttal Read More »
By: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – Okay, that is a deliberately provocative title, but I mean it literally: words don’t have meaning any more than scissors have cut paper. Meaning isn’t an inherent or immutable attribute or possession of a word (something it “has”), but is rather an effect of the word when used in
In Patent Arguments, Remember that Words Don’t Have Meaning Read More »
By: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – In his recent State of the Union address, President Obama followed the common pattern of giving attention and applause lines to nearly every issue on the national agenda. But there was one issue that received no mention at all: climate change. The absence, noted by many commentators, extended even to
Adapt Your Scientific Testimony to Jurors’ Skeptical Ears Read More »
By: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – So, a retired Brazilian judge, two American litigators, and three German engineers walk into a bar… Okay, so it wasn’t a bar, it was an international arbitration, but the potential for miscommunication is just as great as the joke intro would imply. This one took place in Sao Paulo, Brazil and
Keep Your International Arbitration out of the Tower of Babel Read More »
By: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – As closing arguments finished in a recent employment jury trial that I sat through, the defense team and I felt, predictably, that we had the overwhelming weight of evidence on our side of the case. But still, we worried as the jury filed in to deliberate. We had faced a Plaintiff’s case
Understand Juror Bias, But Bet On The Evidence Read More »
By: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm – In litigation it is often true that, “the devil is in the data,” in the sense that numbers and how they’re presented can be extremely important. In employment cases, jurors often need to grasp the overall percentages that prove or disprove a discrimination claim. In mass tort pharmaceutical cases, expert
Choose a “Moving” Way to Convey Evidentiary Data Read More »
By: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm Last week, the trial of Brian David Mitchell came to an abrupt, but temporary, stop in the midst of the defense opening. The trial team for the man accused of abducting the then 14-year-old Elizabeth Smart from her bedroom in Salt Lake City, Utah in June of 2002, and sexually assaulting her over
Remember, Jurors Are Always Forgetting Read More »
by: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm In the recently concluded trial against former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, the jurors came to refer to it as “The Bible,” based both on its power and on its frequently obscure meaning. In this case, the “it” being 105 pages of fairly complex instructions coming at the end of a thirty-nine
Address Your Jury’s Inevitable Difficulty With The Instructions Read More »
by: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm The common wisdom is that closing argument it the time to, well, present arguments. However, a sensitivity to your audience and to what jurors are trying to do during your closing argument, suggests that straightforward argument may not be the best way to help jurors feel like they’re 1.) coming
Remember That Argument Isn’t The Most Important Part of Closing Read More »
by: Dr. Ken Broda Bahm At the close of the corruption trial of former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich for, among other things, trying to sell Barack Obama’s vacated Senate seat to the highest bidder, the defense surprised many by putting on no witnesses and by reneging on an earlier promise that Mr. Blagojevich would testify
Keep Your Burden of Proof in Your Back Pocket Read More »