Courtroom Presentation, Litigation Software : Charles Perez : Trial Presentation Blog

A quick entry for you kind readers this week.. based on an all too true and all too common fear of technology in the courtroom.

Not long ago we had a client ask us to produce a DVD for a court presentation of an expert witness' deposition; a "No-Brainer" around here at Video Resources, but, this was a new, unexplored frontier for the client. We had been given the orignial taped depo on a Monday (it had been taken on the previous Friday) and we were asked to redact a series of comments that the Defense had objected to prior to viewing by the jury on the following day, Tuesday . Again - this is a "No-Brainer" over here but was viewed as no less than "Black Magic" by our client.

The following morning the client took possession of her precious DVD and headed off to a day of battle at the Central Courthouse here in Orange County, CA. We had taken the time to "QC" the DVD (Quality Control review) before delivery and it had passed muster. 

All was good. The Universe was in harmony - life was "in balance".

This was going to be a "first" for our attorney - she wanted to make sure everything ran flawlessly and I had assured her that all she had to do was pop this little disk into the court's DVD player and push the "ON' button - a "No Brainer" indeed.

We got the panicked call just before the jury was about to take a quick break.

SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH THE DVD!     It was playing in black and white rather than billiant color!  Oh my God! Oh My God!.. or words to that effect.

Eric, my steadfast sidekick and fellow techno-geek,  took the call. I was out tending to something completely unrelated (probably having lunch or something.. hard to tell), and when I returned to the office I was confronted by Eric who calmly announced: "We're Needed.... NOW".

He went on to explain in a very matter-of-fact tone to me of the plight and panic of our floundering attorney. He had assured her we would be right over and for her NOT TO PANIC, "everything would be just fine", probably in the same tone of voice of many an airline pilot who just had all the red warning lights flash on in the cockpit. Reassuring, yet....

We quickly put together a back-up DVD system and amplified sound system - a little overkill,yes, but, hey, it's part of the job  (we rent EVERYTHING you could possibly need for a presentation of ANY size) and we included, for good measure, an array of cables and plugs in the event that the culprit may just be a faulty wire. I'm sure with a little more time we could have crammed a 50 inch plasma screen into the mix.

Remember the nerds in grade school and high school who ran the projectors for the class events? Well, some of them grow up and become "Techies" who go about setting up all manner of presentation equipment at courthouses.  That's not true. Fact is, ALL of them grow up to be "Techies" of one sort or another.

Maybe "Grow up" is too strong a term. "Evolve" sounds better, doesn't it? - let's use that.

But I digress... Anyway, just like in school days past, we're the bespeckled, albeit balding, "evolved" nerds that rush to the rescue when all things technical go up in smoke. We'd wear capes if we thought we could get away with it.

Eric and I arrived at the courthouse in record time and, had it not been for the Deputy Sheriff's taking an interest in our electronics we probably would have made to the courtroom about 15 minutes sooner than we did.  FYI: Sheriff deputies are "closet nerds" - this is a scientific fact. Show them a gadget, especially if you're in a hurry, and they'll insist on knowing:

• a)  what it is,
• b)  how do you use it, and
• c)  where can they get one - cheap?

We made it to the Ninth floor of the Santa Ana Courthouse and eventually found the right courtroom (our attorney neglected to give us the right room number so I was popping my head into a variety of those little observation windows attempting to recognize the back of our attorney's head without drawing undo attention from within the courtroom).

The bailiff spotted me first. He pushed through the double doors of the courtroom, preventing me from signaling our attorney and he escorted me back into the hall. He explained that he could bring the equipment into the hall where we could perform our Black Arts and get the faulty DVD to play correctly.

Problem was... alas, the DVD was missing from the player. (A major obstacle, not uncommon when everything goes awry).

Our attorney came out and announced that the DVD (for whatever reason) was left on the Plaintiff's table - smack dab in front of the jury - and someone needed to quietly go in and retreive it. We unanimously nominated the bailiff who rose to the occasion and disappeared into the courtroom trying to look as unobtrusive as a six foot two bailiff possibly could.

Meanwhile, we did what we nerds do best, we fiddled with every button on the machine that we could. All five of them.

About 15 seconds into the exercise Eric discovered that a cable had been connected to the wrong connector on the back of the DVD player. With a slightly audible chuckle he plugged the cable into the correct receptacle and I gave him an approving pat on the head - he usually gets a cookie - but, we were in public. The cookie would have to wait.  Eric frowned.

We inserted the newly recovered DVD, flipped a switch and basked in the warm glow of a color image!  Mission accomplished! Another video crisis averted! Life was once again GOOD! We threw our imaginary capes over our shoulders and prepared to pick up the 20 or so tools that fell out of our toolbelts and were scattered about the floor.  Eric found a pocket protector that he was sure he had lost. I found a copper penny stuck to some gum on the floor.  It was a good day to be alive!

Needless to say, the bailiff was humbled. You see, it was he, the closet nerd, who plugged the cable into the incorrect connector. Our DVD was fine, after all, because it was a "No-Brainer" remember?  Eric gave the bailiff a quick lesson on the nomenclature of the courtroom DVD player, carefully explaining all four sockets to him and their proper function. He included a little crib sheet for the deputy to refer to as well. The bailiff was grateful and apologized profusely for having us rush to the courthouse only to switch a little, itty-bitty cable into the correct socket.  Then he asked if we knew where he could get a good DVD player - cheap.

The look of relief on our attorneys face was priceless! (Something we live for!) The day was saved, her reputation was intact, and everything was fine - just as Eric had promised! (As if there were ever any doubt of the outcome!)

Now, my point here is to show you that sometimes there is an extremely painfully simple explanation for things going awry, especially if you're out of your element. You are attorneys, or paralegals, and your "focus"  once in the courtroom is elsewhere (as it should be), but, folks, much of this is not "Rocket Science". If you can master a Blackberry (or an iPhone) chances are you can handle the "No-Brainers" as well.

When the stuff hits the fan don't panic..if you're using a professional team to create your presentation chances are that all of the big, potential problems have been solved. Take a few deep breathes, stand back and assess the situation; if you're uncomfortable in a high tech environment spend a few bucks to ensure a successful, memorable court presentation. That's why they created nerds - to make you look good!

Don't you owe that to your client?

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I love my job!

I get to meet attorneys who have to perform “stand up” on a regular basis to an audience whose approval they seek with material that is about as exciting as a wet newspaper.

Tough crowds - boring topics. Yet still they show up for appearance after appearance before a captive group of poorly paid and sometimes angry critics - many of whom are striving to look interested in the schtick  the attorney's hawking.

When I’m consulted to prepare a presentation for a first- time client I begin by stressing that we need to play to the lowest common denominator in our "audience". The facts need to “speak for themselves in short order";  it’s like telling a joke – if you have to explain it, you’ve lost any impact as well as the impression you were striving for.

Good litigators are where they are because they possess the gift of verbal presentation – they are storytellers by necessity.  I create the graphic extension to their story, but I’m careful not to become the story. Their story must “flow” naturally – the graphic must “feel" like it “belongs to the story.”

Our company has the ability to create stunning visuals, flashy titles and mind-boggling animations. Our clients’ eyes beam at the simplest effect – like they’re watching “Star Wars” for the first time.

Luckily, common sense prevails as I reign in the cowboys and we simplify, simplify, simplify the message until we’re left with ”just the facts ma’am.”

Just because we can create it doesn’t mean it’s going to work; by this I mean it’s too easy to overwhelm the message with the medium. You don’t want your audience to be dazzled with the mechanics of the presentation and completely overlook the message.

So, let me offer a few basic pointers for you first-timers dealing with projected images:

1.  Hone your message to complement your visual(s) . Your graphic should make a statement that needs a minimum of explanation - it may be necessary to build your images as you speak, if so, try to make an even, yet noticeable  transition between views.

2. Practice your delivery in front of a 7th or 8th grader. Do they understand  your message?  Seriously, if they can't figure out what your saying why would you expect a juror to grasp your message?

3. Set up your presentation quickly and quietly. We typically set up right before the trial begins or during a break.  We’ve got the process down to about 10-12 minutes. Everything is done at a matter-of-fact pace with very little conversation. The key, I think, is to make the presentation look as much like an “everyday event” as possible.

4.  Before launching into your spellbinding visual presentation, practice a little NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming).  Explain to the "audience"  what you’re going to present – prepare their minds for the presentation - briefly explain the purpose of the image(s) you’re about to present. (Set the stage). Don’t make a big production about it – remember, this is an extension of your story – the illustrated part.

5. Keep the graphics conservative. I can’t stress this enough. You’re not going for an Academy Award – you’re trying to make a point.   

6. Don’t read your screen to the "audience" – they can do that for themselves. Instead qualify why this graphic is important – reinforce the message with “Triggers”; short phrases that relate to the graphic so it creates a memorable impact.

7. Present to your "audience", not to the screen. Make the story flow. Be sure to practice with your presenter so that the story remains seamless and natural.

8. Don’t be a “drama queen.”  (You know who you are.) Let the TV lawyers do that.

9. Respect your audience. Speak to them, not at them. You'll know you're in trouble when they start squirming and looking at their watches. (Glazed expressions are another sure-fire hint).

10.  Keep the graphic that makes your point up as long as possible – let the visual reinforce the verbal - you’ve now associated an image with a verbal description - remember - give it a name, a “trigger” or "anchor" that will bring that graphic to mind the next time you need to refer to the subject.

11. Don’t overload the "audience" with images or data.  Tell your story with simple images – simple but to the point. Let them absorb the information in bite sizes (or chunks)  rather than big gulps.

11. Finally - if you're new at this and your message is every bit as effective on a white board, be safe - go with the white board.  Continue honing your storytelling skill until the story becomes (literally) unimaginable, then -  that's your cue to give me a call!

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