CLOSING ARGUMENTS – PERSONAL INJURY TRIAL (PART 5) This is the third and final time that we have to talk to your jury. The first time was during jury selection. The second time was in the opening statement. This third and final time is appropriately called closing argument and it is when we will gather the facts from the trial and arrange them in such a way as to persuade the jury to reach a full and fair verdict in your favor. There are a number of different schools of thought as to the best way to make closing arguments. Truthfully, there are so many different ways to do it and it completely depends upon the circumstances of the case and the style of that particular lawyer. How did the case go? How much freedom will this particular judge allow? What has been the attitude of the defendant and the defense counsel? What sense do we have of the jury either being with us or skeptical of us. Since we bear the burden of proof we make the first closing argument and then the defense makes its closing argument, and then we have the final closing argument to make. It is always a challenge to know what to say and what to leave out. There is a temptation to throw everything at the jury, but in our experience it is better to carefully select the most important and the most persuasive items and trust that the jury will recall the days or weeks of testimony on all of the other details. We do this so that we do not bore the jury or insult the jury and also, we want to highlight certain items. If you highlighted everything in a book, then nothing would stand out. Highlighting by definition means that there are some items which will not be addressed. After closing argument, the judge will instruct the jury on the law and then the jury will deliberate and return its verdict. Extensive trial experience and preparation is not only the key to winning a personal injury trial, it is also the key receiving the maximum possible settlement amount. Insurance companies need to know that...
Posted on: Wed, 26 Mar 2014 13:32:20 +0000
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