Over time, the jury trial has evolved. Although the concept of a judgment made by one’s peers remains the same, attorneys have had to change their legal strategies in order to account for increasingly sophisticated jurors with evolving expectations.
Author: Peter Hecht
Jury Insights from CNN
Mark Calzaretta discusses jury insights related to the Philandro Castile case with Don Lemon on CNN.
Why Machines Can’t Replace Human Court Reporters
Court reporting services have long been an essential part of legal proceedings. No matter the sharp questioning of counsel, the compelling testimony of witnesses or the detail of evidence examination, it is all for naught without someone there to record what happened. Court reporters are present at depositions, in courtroom trials and other forums to document vital information during a legal case.
Jury Profiling: Multiple Levels of Jury Research
Jury “selection” does not exist in the United States. Attorneys choose individuals to serve on the jury by “deselecting” from jury service those individuals who they expect to be unfavorable to their side. Identifying and systematically eliminating pro-plaintiff or pro-defense jurors could be your secret weapon in winning a trial.
Traditional jury selection techniques are often based on stereotypical notions about the influence of juror characteristics on verdict behavior. If you’ve ever tried to connect a potential juror’s gender, race, occupation, social status, marital status, age, religion or demeanor to their tendency to vote guilty or award higher damages, then you’ve probably exercised some of these preconceptions. Needless to say, none of these stereotypes has any scientific basis.
In contrast, scientific jury profiling uses empirical techniques and systematic analysis to develop profiles of favorable and unfavorable jurors. In our experience, only multiple levels of research can predict how an individual will approach the case, evaluate evidence, and render a verdict. Statistical profiling ensures that you’re in the best possible position to seat the best jury.
Jury Research Data and Focus Groups
Trial attorneys often pride themselves on their ability to communicate complex legal theories in a simple way. But when you’re living and breathing a case for many months, it is easy for your objectivity to become compromised. Focus groups and other jury research exercises can help fine tune your arguments and begin to identify some trends in jury profiling.
A mock trial or focus group typically involves the observation of small group deliberation, based on the presentation of testimony that closely approximates an actual trial. By analyzing what mock jurors find significant, meaningful or memorable about the case, we can develop early stage profiles about whether certain attitudes and experiences are likely to be pro-plaintiff or pro-defense and helps us to advise the trial team on the effectiveness of their argument and ways to improve.
Mock jury data can be gathered in various ways, including full trial simulations, shadow juries, focus groups and online mock juries. At certain times, we favor some of these methods and/or combine two or more types of exercises in order to gain the fullest data set to prepare for a trial. It depends on the complexity and value of the case.
When gathering mock jury data, it is important to realize that the quality of the findings is wholly dependent on the quality of the methodology: Put simply, you’ll get better results if the research team is well-versed in the nature of advocacy, presentation, communication, psychology and small group behavior, and designs the study with these factors in mind.
Large-scale Juror Profiling
While traditional jury research data is extremely helpful, it is often based on a relatively small sample size, both in terms of the total number of participants and the number of focus groups. Sample size is a key determinant of how much weight to ascribe to research results. Generally, smaller sample size groups should be interpreted with caution since the group’s characteristics may have been the primary cause of the outcome; they are not predictive in the statistical sense. This is particularly important when evaluating damage awards or responsibility allocations, which are the least reliable types of data.
Because of these limitations, we recommend large-scale juror profiling studies. Massive community profiling allows us to validate the initial profiles developed through our jury research, and determine with statistical certainty what types of jurors are likely to favor the plaintiff versus the defense in your case.
Large-scale profiling is a multifaceted protocol. It starts with one or more large-scale community perception surveys, which we administer with the intent of uncovering community attitudes and biases to each party’s respective position in the case. Research consistently shows that pre-existing attitudes are more predictive of verdict behavior than the potential juror’s experiences; and experiences are significantly more predictive than demographics.
In other words, it is not enough to find out what experiences the potential jurors had, but also what they learned from these experiences. Essentially, we’re using big data about ordinary people, such as their social media activity, to develop a statistically reliable verdict-orientation model based on what motivates people to think the way they do.
The impressions we collect allow us to develop and gain a more nuanced understanding of the kinds of jurors who would be more receptive to the plaintiff’s position than they would be to the defense case. Correlated with mock jury data, this can help us narrow down potential voir dire questions to those which we know are reliable predictors of verdict orientation. The goal is to help the trial team effectively identify and deselect jurors who cannot and never will be persuaded.
Final Thoughts
“Almost every case has been won or lost when the jury is sworn,” legendary defense attorney Clarence Darrow once claimed. That may be an exaggeration, but getting even a small edge can turn the tables in a difficult case. Jury profiling can give you that edge — as long as it’s the right type of profiling. Piecemeal small-scale mock juries have less value than aggregated results gathered from multiple data points and deeper statistical analysis.
Just as you evaluate cases in a critical manner, evaluate the quality of the research service used with the same considered eye. Choosing a consultant who applies multiple layers of rigor to their analysis ensures the quality of your data and assigns a degree of much-needed confidence to the results you have obtained. It can make all the difference.
If you’re ready to learn more about Magna’s jury profiling services, contact Magna Legal Services today.
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How Real-Time Court Reporting Saves Time and Money
Court reporting is the process of documenting the speech that occurs during legal proceedings, either in a courtroom or during depositions that are recorded outside of court. Court reporters record the words of defendants, lawyers, prosecutors and other people appearing in court in a written format, allowing legal teams to refer to the documents later to find out what transpired during the court hearing.
Traditionally, court reporters have used a shorthand form of language known as stenography to record court proceedings. After the court proceedings have been completed, court reporters can go back and translate it from shorthand into Standard English, although this process can take a long time.
Real-time court reporting uses technology to quickly translate court reporters’ shorthand into English. This speeds up the process of creating a written record of the court proceedings.
How Real-time Court Reporting Works
Some of the earliest machines to be used by court reporters were known as stenographs. Invented in 1830 and significantly updated in the early 20th century, a stenograph allows court reporters to record their shorthand notes very quickly. A stenograph contains fewer keys than a traditional keyboard and allows more than one key to be pressed at the same time. Court reporters have used stenographs for nearly two hundred years to create a record of court proceedings.
Real-time court reporting involves connecting a court reporter’s stenography machine to a computer. Using computer-aided transcription (CAT) technology, the computer can automatically translate the shorthand notes into a full English report.
Magna Legal Services uses real-time court reporting to ensure that lawyers always have accurate depositions to support their cases in court. Using the latest in reporting technology, along with an advanced online legal management service, Magna Legal Services allows lawyers to organize their depositions and other important legal files from anywhere in the world.
Cost Benefits of Real-time Court Reporting
One of the main benefits of real-time court reporting technology is that it is interactive, which means it allows you to make notes on a testimony. You can easily view previous parts of the testimony, which facilitates on-the-fly research. This can cut down on the overall research costs that your business faces.
Another key benefit of real-time court reporting technology is that it allows transcripts to be delivered very quickly, cutting down on the amount of time you spend waiting for the information you need. This makes the litigation process more efficient, which could lead to significant cost savings for your legal firm.
Magna Legal Vision takes real-time court reporting to the next level. This platform allows you to collect and organize video depositions using video teleconferencing and streaming services. This technology can save time and cut costs by reducing the need for people giving testimonies to physically travel to your office or the courtroom. The platform also offers multimedia features, in which witnesses can annotate exhibits during a deposition. These tools can be extremely powerful in many cases.
Advantages of Real-time Court Reporting
Real-time court reporting has many advantages. The most obvious advantage is the greater efficiency of the process, which allows you to gain access to reports much more quickly than would be possible if you had to wait for them to be translated by a human court reporter.
When you use the real-time court reporting services offered by Magna Legal Services, you gain access to an even greater range of benefits. In particular, Magna’s cloud-based Online Office platform which allows you to access and work with your deposition files no matter where in the world you are located or what kind of device you are using.
Some of the features Magna Legal Services Online Office offers include the following:
- Deposition management:You can use the deposition request form to schedule depositions at times that suit everyone. You can specify the format you want the deposition to be recorded in, whether it’s a text file, CD or video report.
- Calendar management:You can view and manage your deposition schedule for today, this week or the following month.
- Document management:You can access all documents related to a case online through this cloud-based platform. You can review and print documents or share them with other members of your legal team.
- Account management:You can manage your invoices and other important account information online.
Magna Legal Vision is another useful service offered by Magna Legal Services. This technology provides Magna clients with real-time access to their deposition and video footage.
Conclusion
Real-time court reporting offers many benefits to legal firms who want to provide the best possible service to their clients. To make the most of real-time court reporting, you need to use up-to-date technology to get the most accurate and timely reports of depositions, testimonials and other court proceedings.
To find out more about the real-time court reporting service offered by Magna Legal Services, get in touch with us. We are ready to explain the technology we use to capture testimonials and help you organize all the case-related documents you need to win cases for your clients. Contact us today to find out how our real-time court reporting services can help you.
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How To Hire a Court Reporter
Court reporters offer an invaluable service for legal institutions and for attorneys who rely on accurate transcriptions of proceedings. It can be a challenging process to search for a court reporter, especially for legal professionals new to the process in a particular jurisdiction or who don’t know much about the venue. In the absence of a professional network you can rely on for a word-of-mouth referral, you have to use objective criteria to find the right person. Going to court can be a confusing time, there is a load of things that need to be sorted alongside getting a court reporter. For example you might need to use a process service (such as one provided by someone like the Colorado Springs Process Server).
Lawyers assess several key factors when deciding on a court reporter. This kind of analysis is essential, as the role of a court reporter is complex and attorneys need to rely on those services in order to safeguard the welfare of their clients. The welfare of clients is of the highest importance to attorneys like Bley & Evans, they need to make sure that everything going on, is happening in a fair and impartial environment to get the best result they can from the proceedings. Consider these criteria when searching for a new court reporter for your next deposition or trial.
Certifications and Training Matter
Court reporters provide the only record of depositions and trial proceedings. They document the gestures and actions of speakers using stenography equipment. At the conclusion of events, they edit for typographical errors, ensuring the record is accurate and reliable. However, a full-service legal service can provide more sophisticated services, like video depositions.
Because court reporters must have a general understanding of the legal environment, they are trained in legal terminology and procedures. Many states require court reporters to have a license. Additionally, most court reporters are members of the National Court Reporters Association, adhering to a code of ethics and committing to provide unbiased and accurate reporting. Magna court reporters are also experts in particular subject matter, meaning they’ll be up-to-date on all of the latest terminologies and issues regarding your particular field of law.
Hiring a trained and certified court reporter gives attorneys peace of mind that an important word won’t be missed or incorrectly transcribed. When a deposition is used in court or transcript used for an appeal, there will be no debate as to whether the court reporter made a mistake.
When searching for court reporters, ask about their training and confirm that they are NCRA certified. Certifications through the NCRA are verified independently and continuously updated. The organization provides continuing education programs and services to ensure its members are able to meet the high standards required of attorneys and courts across the country.
How Will Depositions Be Recorded?
Attorneys refer to legal records for varied kinds of information. Often, a written transcript can only reveal part of what’s important in a piece of testimony. Gestures, hesitations, body language and other visual cues are mostly missing from text-based transcription. Legal experts and layman observers agree that visual information is often crucial to gain a greater understanding of what was said and thereby the legal argument.
Video records offer additional insight and create another record of what transpired, particularly if cameras are placed at a variety of angles to get a full perspective. Advanced technology allows for real-time transcription of testimony that supplements the video recording, so attorneys can refer back to important places in the proceedings almost immediately.
Since securing a deposition and exhibits is a crucial part of court reporting, confirm the person you hire will get the records you need. MagnaLS, for example, provides both written and video depositions and offers camera shots from many angles so no important detail is missed. When depositions are presented to a jury or judge, those subtle cues can make the difference between winning or losing a case.
What Technology Solutions Do They Offer?
Court reporting has evolved significantly over the past several decades. The days of court reporters using shorthand to take down dialogue are over, although experienced court reporters may use an impressive range of skills in order to document all aspects of a proceeding.
As legal cases have become more complex, reporters have introduced advanced technology to ensure every detail is recorded for the benefit of the courts, attorneys and juries. This is essential in cases where there is a great deal of scientific evidence to analyze, if attorneys have to impeach witnesses or challenge amateur evidence like cell phone video.
Ask your prospective court reporters about the technology they are trained to use and have access to. Sophisticated technology offers a 360-degree perspective of a proceeding, including comprehensive video, audio recordings and written records. MagnaLS, for example, offers digital videography and a multi-camera perspective. Real-time exhibit and video deposition integration, as well as courtroom video playback, give attorneys essential tools to examine witnesses. For lawyers, it usually means having the competitive edge that can get the best results for clients.
After the session is complete, MagnaLS handles video digitization and transcript synchronization so you receive the optimal record of proceedings for use in later stages of the case.
Contact MagnaLS to Learn More
MagnaLS is committed to meeting high standards in legal services. Attorneys place a great deal of trust in our technology and personnel, a trust we do not take for granted. With a nationwide reach, we can find the right people to work your case in any part of the country as well as internationally.
We always welcome inquiries from prospective new clients interested in our work. For high-quality court reporting services, contact MagnaLS today!
Effective Ways a Court Reporter Can Assist in a Case
Savvy attorneys realize a court reporter can be an indispensable resource in evaluating a witness and trial prep in general. While at one time all courtrooms supplied a trained professional to document proceedings in detail, budget cuts and changing priorities have left many legal experts on their own when it comes to securing a reliable transcript of a trial or court hearing.
Court reports offer an unbiased, high-quality record of witness testimony, lawyer motions and objections, and judicial rulings that provide invaluable information as the trial continues or the verdict is appealed at a later date.
What an Experienced Court Reporter Does
Court reporters provide real-time access to a transcript of depositions, hearings and trial proceedings. Using modern technology, they create a written record of every word said during a legal proceedings, including witness questioning in front of a jury or judge. Court reporters are often present during depositions in order to capture the details of testimony as a case unfolds.
Many who work as court reporters are members of the National Court Reporters Association, a body that mandates a code of ethics. Trusted court reporters are unbiased recorders of information and prohibited from showing favor to one side or another. In addition, career court reporters maintain professional decorum by acting professionally at all times, showing little emotion during proceedings and remaining focused on the task at hand.
In cases where witness testimony is central to an attorney’s argument, court transcripts preserve and thus permit detailed cross-examination and impeachment of a witness with his or her own words. When the court record is absent, a witness can simply forget the precise account given during a previous day’s testimony. One person’s version of events may be contrary to another’s. Transcripts are an invaluable tool for lawyers who want to get to the core of what happened.
Talented court reporters offer language and translation services for live testimony and transcribed documents. All members of the profession receive training in legal proceedings and legal language in order to do their jobs efficiently. Multilingual court reporters have the added ability to translate from one language to another with the nuance of the legal environment. Also, an experienced court reporter learns the case and will build a database to make subsequent depositions to make a case run more smoothly.
Learn more about Magna’s language services.
How a Court Reporter Can Be a Difference Maker
Witnesses are often deposed before trial. This is a form of questioning that takes place outside of court, in the presence of attorneys from both sides. Witnesses are under oath and sworn to tell the truth, by the court’s agent- the court reporter, but lawyers can ask questions that may not be admissible under court rules. A deposition is an invaluable way for both sides to get at the information they are looking for and to plan trial strategy.
In order to use this deposition for maximum effect during a trial, lawyers want to present a witness with the testimony provided at a previous date. This is almost impossible without proof of previous testimony. Court reporting is more effective than a poor audio recording, since attorneys can zero in on certain words and phrases the witness used. In addition, relying on recording technology alone is actually time-consuming and more expensive, since a written transcript of an audio recording must still be produced. These written transcripts are also used in court briefs submitted by the parties.
In order to get a good deposition, court reporters can work with legal counsel to ensure the information is conveyed clearly. While remaining objective and professional, court reporters can request that parties refrain from talking over one another and speak clearly so no vital details are missed.
Court Reporters and Technology
Although court reporting has existed for many decades, it has evolved as technology has changed. Many court reporters use a stenotype machine to transcribe proceedings, but it has many modern modifications. Recent advances include connecting the court reporter’s device to a laptop to create real-time closed captions of the testimony or for the benefit of those with hearing impairment.
Some court reporters do their jobs over an internet live stream, allowing them to provide the same services without being in the same room. This is invaluable for depositions taking place in remote areas where it may be difficult to set up proceedings. Use of internet streaming depositions can also be a cost saver as travel costs are not necessary as well as time for travel is saved.
In any event, modern court reporters have extensive training and experience in the technology that makes their job easier and more efficient. Unlike some industries where technology has lagged behind, court reporting has embraced new ways of transcribing and saving information so it can be used in a legal context.
Learn More About Court Reporting Services
Court reporters are respected members of legal teams and the court system. For most, the profession is a long-term career that involves ongoing training and skill development. As resources provided by courts decrease because of declining budgets, law firms and lawyers often have to step in to fill the gap and arrange for their own services.
Given the importance of court reporting, it is essential that you choose not only skilled and experienced individuals, but a firm with extensive resources and a history of taking on the most qualified members of the profession. To learn more about your options for court reporting, virtual depositions, translation and video services, contact Magna today.
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