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

Well, it happened again this week and I just feel it's my duty to educate those overworked, underpaid legal assistants and paralegals who make this call to us with aprehension and slight embarassement in their voice: " Do you have an Elmo we can rent?"

By the tone in their voice I know they have this image of the world famous Sesame Street® character firmly lodged in their mind's eye........ then there's that  moment of silence after they've asked  (which I'll admit I relish!) where I imagine them wincing - waiting for my laughter... that I answer with all the casualness of a fast food hamburger jockey asking if you want to "super size" your order: "Yes, we have an Elmo, do you need a projector and screen with that too?"

Needless to say there is a great sense of relief from the caller at this point that they haven't been the butt of some inside office joke.

I then explain that this is a presentation tool and has nothing to do with  the TV character. This always elicits an embarassed giggle from the caller who I then recount the numerous times I've had to "introduce them to ELMO", the visual presentation device!"

So - here's the scoop on "our ELMO" - the one we recommend for trial or litigation purposes: (NOTE: there exist a veritable glut of "Elmo's" that are available for a variety purposes. Visit the ELMO web site and you'll get an idea of all the applications these little guys are designed to handle). 

Now, back to our Elmo: Our little guy works much like those old overhead projectors that many of us grew up with years ago, the ones that had a powerful lightsource that projected "cels", or transparancies on the wall or onto a screen, made a lot of noise and caused temporary blindess to the operator.

The ELMO we provide has a video camera that captures a flat document or, better yet, a three-dimensional object and projects it via a projector or through a connection to a video screen, LCD or plasma, for group viewing and is virtually quiet and heat-free during operation.

The ELMO has two different cool (as in temperature cool) light sources for two different applications: 1) overhead lighting, offset at 45 degrees, will evenly  illuminate a written document or three dimensional object and, 2) transmitted light from the base will allow you to project transparencies.

But wait.. there's more! (It slices, it dices... whoa.. that's a different product..maybe later)

Once the document has been placed within ELMO's view you can zoom into a specific line (or word) on the document or a particular reference point on an object.

Additional inputs and outputs allow the presenter to interface with a computer with images, say from a PowerPoint presentation or a Visionary presentation and merge the images seamlessly to the projector.

If you're faced with presenting three dimensional exhibits or written documents to a group this is the the tool to use.  It sets up in about 10 seconds and takes about 15 seconds to master the controls.

That's it!  No more mystery! 

The next time you're asked to locate an "ELMO" you can smile with self confidence and look your boss in the eye and ask : "Do we need a projector or screen with that order?"

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In the past few years you couldn't have helped but notice that things are changing in the courtroom. In 1996   the public got a glimpse of a (then) state-of -the-art courtroom presentation of the nationally televised trial of  OJ Simpson.  As I recall the only visuals provided were crime scene photos, a few timeoline graphs and several DNA-related drawings. Laptops were at the disposal of the attorneys and Barry Scheck made the most of an overhead projector.

More and more often in todays court an average jury will be made up of a majority of people who are visual learners. That is, they will want, at a deep psychological level, to have information presented to them visually. The majority of the public are quite comfortable getting their information via a "talking head" or through a demonstrative exhibit. 

Most jury psychologists, including Amy Singer, believe that people learn much more through seeing and hearing rather than from hearing alone.  The use of demonstrative evidence usually grabs the jury's attention and often has them sitting at the edge of their seats when things like models and objects are being shown.

Unfortunately, most litigators are auditory learners who prefer to teach orally.

Although this is quite natural for them it isn't always the most effective form of communicating an argument or building a foundation.

The problem created when these two groups communicate with one another is easily appreciated: Litigators feel effective by "saying it" and most jurors would rather "see it."

Today's courtroom has the potential for so much gadgetry and wizardry the American Bar Association has created a webpage to address the available technology entitled "(the) Legal Technology Resource Center".  The Federal Judicial Center has also weighed in with the publication of "Effective Use of Courtroom Technology: A Judges Guide to Pretrial and Trial".

My mission is  to assist you, the litigator by assisting you to make an informed decision as to what may or may not be applicable to a case you're presenting when you're considering adding  "Ooh and Ahh" visuals to bolster your argument.

Sometimes you need to take a deep breath and rethink your options and look at the bigger picture - and we're here to help.

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