Trial Tip: The Details Matter

An Eagle Scout pin on a lawyer’s lapel.

A Day in the Life video briefly showing a Mercedes SUV in the garage of a plaintiff’s family claiming financial hardship.

The attorney whose objections are only sustained one time out of a dozen.

Jurors notice all of these things, and more. To them, what they observe and analyze in a courtroom is so much more than what the witnesses are saying on the stand. As their attention and focus spread beyond testimony and case facts, jurors’ observations of seemingly inconsequential details can be a powerful tool in shaping their opinions of the lawyers, parties involved, and the merits of the case itself.

Consider a recent five-week medical malpractice trial we monitored. As much as we noted about courtroom events and the jurors’ reactions, it turns out the jurors were just as attentive to the most minute details, including those described above.

Although they were quick to say during exit interviews that they didn’t arrive at a verdict based on any of those observations, it was clear that the lawyer with the Eagle Scout pin quickly gained credibility among the panel – and that his slightly unkempt suits stood in sharp contrast to the other side’s bespoke ensembles.

Also evident to these jurors was the fact the plaintiffs involved "weren’t hurting for money." In addition to the pricey SUV, jurors also noted the large house (and were critical that the plaintiff's young son with cerebral palsy had a room "barely bigger than a walk-in closet") and the father’s tendency to wear designer Polo shirts in the courtroom. “I kept a tally, and I saw that little horse every day,” one juror told us. “Those shirts aren’t cheap, so I didn’t think they should be crying poverty.”

One thing our clients learned during this trial was the importance of paying as much attention to detail as the jurors. After one expert was finished testifying, a gleaming black town car was waiting outside the courthouse to take him to the airport. Not a good way to connect with the jurors--especially the farmer who gawked as he puttered by in his battered 1970s pick-up truck.

Because strong case facts and concise, effective themes are the cornerstone of any good trial presentation, it's sometimes easy to overlook details. But jurors are watching, and consciously or not, their observations of the little things are helping to shape their impressions of the big picture.

-Claire Luna