Plaintiff Trial Lawyer Tips

The November 2024 King County Bar Bulletin had an article by jury consultants Thomas O’Toole and Kevin Boally dealing with the issue of causation and its importance in obtaining a plaintiff verdict. It was a subject I have written and lectured about to lawyers. Causation is often ignored or under emphasized by plaintiff attorneys. Too often plaintiffs proceed with the frame of mind that if they prove the harmful conduct they will receive a favorable verdict. This is consistent with…

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In the early 1970’s there was an  African American comedian, Flip Wilson, who hosted his own weekly comedy series and earned a Golden Globe and two Emmy Awards he was  so talented. One of  his hilarious routines involved acting out a character,  Geraldine,  who was married to long suffering Reverend LeRoy, pastor of the Church of What’s Happening Now.  Her  excuse  for everything she did wrong was:  “The devil made me do  it.!” As Flip enacted in a famous routine,…

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We all know that the basic elements of a tort case involve the existence of a duty with a breach of that duty that causes damages. We also know that there are common defenses which we face in our tort cases. Inevitably these are based upon one of the required elements for a valid tort claim. It is helpful, therefore, for us to review the defenses which we should have in mind as we prepare our case and go through…

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