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Category: Opening statement

OPENING STATEMENT ON DAMAGE PORTION OF CASE

OPENING STATEMENT ON DAMAGE PORTION OF CASE

  For a description of this trial see I thought I’d share the short opening statement I made which was limited to the damage portion of the case since my partners had covered liability before I spoke. I don’t offer this as a model, but simply to suggest that one can achieve multimillion dollar verdicts in major injury cases without a lengthy opening statement on damages. What isn’t illustrated are the slides that accompanied this opening and which allowed me…

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DAVID BALL NEW BOOK DAMAGES 3

DAVID BALL NEW BOOK DAMAGES 3

I am a great admirer of David Ball because he is one of very few people who has taken the effort to spell out the steps and procedures for trying a civil case based upon sound research and experience. Many people have explained procedures and concepts, but few have done so in a “paint by the numbers” style of teaching. His latest edition of Damages 3 is a book every trial lawyer should own, read and put into practice. Here…

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Grab their attention first in opening statement – famous first lines

Grab their attention first in opening statement – famous first lines

We know that in this world of headline reporting people draw instant impressions. Human resource people report they spend on average 15 seconds per resume so the opening lines had better be an attention getter. In the first few seconds of every encounter we are instantly evaluated. We are observed from head to toe by demeanor, body language and grooming. Within three seconds impressions are formed about us. When it involves advertising it is the headline that determines whether you…

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