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Month: July 2009

Trial advice from the peanut gallery

Trial advice from the peanut gallery

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This may not be of much benefit to you, but I thought I’d share a practical example of my views involving a trial. My partner, who is an excellent lawyer, is involved in a medical malpractice case where his elderly client experienced symptoms of complications the night of her surgery. The nurse didn’t call the doctor or take action and she suffered partial paralysis. The doctor was upset about it, reported it to administration and complained to the nurse. The…

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Trial is a series of battles

Trial is a series of battles

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It is very easy to become discouraged during a trial by something that goes wrong. But, it is important to remember that each witness, each event and each day is no more than a series of battles and not the war itself. If you let one thing that went wrong demoralize you, you are beaten. Maintaining confidence while seeing the problem is essential to winning cases, because no case goes in perfectly or exactly as you wanted it to be…

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Do you want a six person jury or a twelve person jury?

Do you want a six person jury or a twelve person jury?

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Recently I was asked about the issue of whether you are better off with a six or twelve person jury. Even though it is probably moot for most of our cases because we don’t have a choice, it is an issue worth considering. In Washington state, where I practice, the rule provides that a party can request a six or twelve person jury, but the other side can demand a twelve person jury if six is initially requested. The insurance…

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