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

Due to the nature of our litigation support servces here at Video Resources I've had the opportunity to test out a variety of courtroom presentation software; The two most popular (in constant use) being Adobe Acrobat Professional and Microsoft's PowerPoint.

These two excellent programs embody what I consider the "base" technology for what has developed into today's advanced presentation software like CT Summation, Visionary, Trial Director and Trial Max. The latter named programs have taken the "basics" (again, my interpretation) of these two "core" programs expanding upon their features and delivering the rock 'em, sock 'em, boffo presentations we've all come to love and, (for our clients at least) expect.

As fantastic as each of these advanced presentation programs are they come with a learning curve and, in a couple of cases, a hefty price tag.

So - let's look at the an alternative - something for those firms who don't need to rip through 16,000+ exhibits, photos and videos. (You know who you are).

What about the smaller case that has a few documents, some photos and maybe even a video deposition coupled with a budget that prohibits outsourcing at any cost?  

If you're a small firm (or even a paralegal in a moderate firm) I'm sure you've been exposed to and made use of PowerPoint at some time or another. If you've had the opportuniuty to study any of my previous posts you'll also note that in the wrong hands I firmly beleive that the mis-use (or over use) of elements of this program can be a real crowd snoozer.

So - what to do? Here's a terrific, affordable alternative for novice and PowerPoint sage alike: PowerPoint For Court created by award winning graphic design artist Herb Rubinstein.

At just $149.00 PowerPoint for Court isn't a lightweight entry by any means. In Herb Rubinsstein's own words: "Just about everyone is familiar with PowerPoint and it is eminently capable of displaying absolutely anything. So why go out and look for Legal Presentation programs that can cost a lot of money and take hours of valuable time to learn when you already have the perfect software package?

The answer is Don’t!

Using PowerPoint for Court and the software and material found on the Resource CD, you will be on the cutting edge of Courtroom Presentation Technology and will have the winning edge over the opposing side."

Personally, I think this would be $149.00 well spent for any law firm. The whole package comes on one CD and is chock full of useful apps as well as extremely useful advice not only on PowerPoint but also on audio recording, embedding video and courtroom technique.

Herb claims his motivation for creating the program was due to his involvement working with law firms who just didn't grasp the mechanics of PowerPoint or else lacked any expertise (or motivation) in exploiting its true potential.

Check out his web site: www.PowerPointForCourt.com - all the info is there and I'm beginning to sound like an infomercial for the product so I'll let you read up on the particulars for yourself. This is a "must have" for every firm (or at least the poor paralegal tasked with creating the court room presentation).

One final point: I haven't been compensated in any way for this; I enjoy using programs that simplify  the argument with clarity and accuracy and anything that will make your presentation a success is my goal!

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Huh?

It's called "Pecha Kucha" (pronounced peh-chak-cha) . I discovered this globally-accepted presentation phenomenon in a terrific book entitled "PresentationZen - Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery" by Garr Reynolds.

In the past I've railed on the "Death by Powerpoint" that has unfortunately become the norm in almost all Powerpoint presentations from the classroom to the boardroom to the courtroom.

Pecha Kucha is a simple and challenging practice that I believe will hone your presentation skills and make for a better presentation (and presenter).

In the August 2007 issue of WIRED Magazine this "process" was simplified in an article entitled "Get to the Powerpoint in 20 Slides Then Sit the Hell Down". The concept is almost too simple (which is probably why you've never heard of it):

"pecha-kucha (Japanese for "chatter"), applies a simple set of rules to presentations: exactly 20 slides displayed for 20 seconds each. That's it. Say what you need to say in six minutes and 40 seconds of exquisitely matched words and images and then sit the hell down. The result, in the hands of masters of the form, combines business meeting and poetry slam to transform corporate cliché into surprisingly compelling beat-the-clock performance art. "

So what's this got to do with the courtroom? - Isn't it obvious? Read On!

Honing your message for your jury is probably the biggest challenge any attorney faces today.

If you feel you're pretty proficient in the use of Powerpoint in the court - you know - you're the "go to guy" (or gal) to put the "slides" together - then this can be an ultimate challenge to your talents.

Me, I can't tell a simple story - seriously. (Don't look so surprised!)

Anyone who works with me or around me will vouch for that statement. My stories or explanations go into deep detail; I'm a lot like listening to a Charles Dickens novel - you know, rich in minutae (or manure... depending on the audience).

I'll never be accused as being at a loss for words, but, I've been bested many a time by an attorney who makes me look like a glib simpleton by comparison - I've been awestruck by the speed at which they've been able to get the eyes of jurors to "glaze over" within seconds of launching into their presentation. That takes practice. It must. Somewhere there has to be an unwritten law that dictates that some attorneys (unintentionally) inflict "Brain Freeze" on a jury in the course of an argument.

Powerpoint in the wrong hands is a lethal weapon - it can bore your brains out of your audience and confuse or lose your message. I've seen it - you've seen it. Heck, it's pretty hard NOT to see it.

Try your presentation out on "Fresh Eyes".

Why not work, creatively - either with others or within your organization - to eliminate this menace? Why continue to use the same tired formula when a fresher, simpler approach may be within reach?

Here's an idea:

The creative forces behind the Pecha Kucha concept spawned Pecha Kucha Night in cities around the world.

Their web site,PechuKucha.org,  offers this explanation for the monthly event:

Pecha Kucha Night, devised by Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham (Klein Dytham architecture), was conceived in 2003 as a place for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public.

But as we all know, give a mike to a designer (especially an architect) and you’ll be trapped for hours. The key to Pecha Kucha Night is its patented system for avoiding this fate. Each presenter is allowed 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds each – giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. This keeps presentations concise, the interest level up, and gives more people the chance to show.

What? No Pecha Kucha Night in your area? 

Why let that stop you from utilizing the simple concept? Hone your skills - streamline your argument - practice with some abstract ideas - practice with your current case.

At the risk of beating an old cliche further into the ground:"Think outside the (blue) box".

Imagine creating a persuasive argument that is easily followed and understood under seven minutes.

What? You can't? Neither can I.   But it's worth a try, isn't it?  What have you got to lose?

Your Case?

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Albert Einstein stated a principle in 1933 which is often paraphrased as "Theories should be as simple as possible, but no simpler." Occam's Razor is a similar principle of logic that can be summed up as "All other things being equal, the simplest solution is the best." Then there's the principle more people are probably familiar with: the KISS principle ("Keep It Simple, Stupid").

A better philosophy is, "If it's simple and works well, don't complicate it."

The key here is that it has to "work well."

I've been kept pretty busy the past few months (since October of last year!) with a continuous series of court presentations in and around Southern California, some  civil matters, some criminal cases and yet another in Federal Court and haven't given this blog the proper attention it needs.

The overriding message you'll be hearing me preach about for the next several months is how we accomplished success after success by keeping the message simple and to the point no matter how overwhelming the exhibit load.

In the next few "blogs" I'll be playing "catch up" and relating my first hand experiences with the technology and techniques that we've used in each of these presentations as well as  insight as to what worked well and how we "uncomplicated the complicated".

Our performance in court is always a continuing "work in progress" since every case presents its own set of challenges; we've had a 90 day run that tested our mettle in many situations and I've lived to tell about it - stay tuned; I'll try to not disappoint!

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I was reading a great article published by Legal Times back in March 2004 entitled "Beyond the Flip Chart - How To Use The Latest CourtroomTechnology to Wow a Judge or Jury", by Mark David Wegener and Andrew Lazerow.  A particular paragraph early in the article struck me as prophetic as it related to a recent court incident I experienced at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles (the same courthouse used in the background of the TV series "Shark").

The article stated "The effective trial lawyer will continue to rely on the timeless tactics of credibility, emotional appeals, and logic. But in order to effectively persuade a jury, the trial lawyer must deliver the case themes and facts in a way that is consistent with how jurors process information in our high technology age.

Indeed, jurors have come to expect it. Even when the traditional flip chart or white board is large enough for a jury to actually read -in itself a rarity- the old techniques are simply not enough to keep a jury's (or a judge's) attention".

Well, this played right into our clients very own "Perry Mason moment" at the courthouse.

The opposing council was apparently a "neo luddite" - he knew enough about technology to check his Blackberry for email messages and, well, that was pretty much it. Our client, on the other hand, had recently "seen the light" and was embracing (and reveling) in the new-found "technological wizardry" we were offering.

This was a fairly simple presentation - we were impeaching a witness ... (yawn) again. The witness had been subjected to 17 hours of video deposition over several days (with her counsel sitting nearby, of course). Several rather innocuous looking certified documents had been introduced throughout the trial, many of them with notarized signatures.  We had edited the 17 hours down to about 20 minutes of video with synchronized transcript. (Note: our software of choice is Visionary Litigation Software - easy to use (and learn)  and it's  FREE - more about this outstanding program in a future blog)

The software allowed us to put up a variety of documents and zoom in or highlight (or both) segments of the document. We can either do this "on the fly' in the courtroom or preplan the presentation before trial. The document can then be presented side-by-side with the video deposition with the transcript flowing, line by line, under the video image.

If you haven't seen this type presentation you haven't lived. But, I digress.

OK - so finally it's "showtime" - it has taken us about 15 minutes to set up our 8 foot screen, focus the projector, adjust the audio and fire up the computer. The witness takes the stand and all eyes are directed to the screen- the first video clip begins with the attorney asking the witness if she understands what "perjury" means, "Yes" she replies. "Does she know what telling the truth means?", "Yes" she replies. The video with the text remains on screen for a few moments.

The next video clip begins."Have you ever been gone by any other name or used any other name than "___"?, "No" is the reply from the screen. At that moment a variety of certified, notarized documents with a variety of her "known name" with "aka's" (also known as) appear on the screen beside her video image. The witness, sitting in front of the screen visibly cringes.

OBJECTION! Shouts the opposing counsel - and the presentation is halted. In one extremely painfully brief moment the attorney has just realized that he sat through the whole video deposition with his client and had allowed several documents into evidence and now the whole shebang had been laced neatly together - this was not good. This was bad..what to do?

We all waited for what seemed like a small eternity for him to gather his thoughts and explain what it was that was so objectionable about the video. The judge finally broke the silence and asked him to explain the objection. He replied, with a straight face I might add, "Your honor, this is just so much courtroom gadgetry - I mean - what are they showing us? A video with a bunch of documents? How can we follow this.. these pictures... what is this... stuff?

That was the best he could muster on short notice I guess.

The judge calmly replied: "This is no different than having the opposing council stand in front of a whiteboard reading your clients depositon while flipping through enlarged documents. This is cleaner and faster. I like it and I'll allow it.    OVERRULED".

And so it went.....The Courtroom Gadegtry ran its course for the next 30 or so minutes with "OBJECTION" being injected here and there and "OVERRULED" echoing back. Like a lively ping-pong match. We won every time. (Actually, it was more like shooting fish in a barrel, but ping-pong is a better visual).

Afterwards a brief recess was called. A frazzeled attorney took his shaken client out of the courtroom to try to calm her down. Our client beamed at his client who beamed at us - it had been a series of multiple Perry Mason moments  and we were all exhuasted, satisfied, and just wanted to roll over and go to sleep.

Another day of successful technical wizardry under our belts!

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