Most veteran trial attorneys will agree that while a case is not always won at jury selection, it can easily be lost there. It is one of the three most critical moments of any trial (the other two being the opening statement and the cross-examination of the first witness), yet the voir dire is usually relegated to the proverbial background, only to be heeded in the last few moments. days. –or even hours–just before the trial begins.

IF YOU HAVE WAITED UNTIL THE WEEKEND BEFORE THE TRIAL TO PLAN YOUR VOIR DIRE, YOU HAVE WAITED TOO LONG

Building your jury selection strategy should start weeks before your case goes to trial, after you’ve done your pre-trial research (you’ve done pre-trial research, right?) and are beginning to prepare your case. boss case seriously. If you find yourself waiting until the Saturday or Sunday before trial, jotting down a few questions on a pad, and then showing up in court on Monday and doing your voir dire, without the benefit of research-based or essay-based profiling, You may be missing out on the opportunity to educate your jurors and eliminate the ones most dangerous to you.

THE PURPOSE OF VOIR DIRE IS NOT TO DETERMINE WHETHER JURIES CAN BE FAIR AND IMPARTIAL!

I’m sorry, but there is no such thing as an impartial jury. Every person who comes to the courtroom (jury, attorney, judge, clerk, court reporter, bailiff) brings two things:

1. Life experiences.

2. The attitudes that result from those life experiences.

Therefore, the purpose of your cross-examination is to uncover those attitudes and experiences, get jurors to talk about them, and then send home people who have hostile attitudes toward your case and/or your client.

The key purposes of Voir Dire

o Find and fire jurors who will be detrimental to your case

o Put the issues of your case in front of juries

o Find out who your jurors are and what they have to say about the issues, so you have a better idea of ​​how to communicate with them during your case.

Your goals in Voir Dire

or Get them talking!

o Get them talking about your topics

o Have them talk themselves out of jury duty if they are hostile to your case.

IF YOU ONLY REMEMBER ONE THING FROM THIS ARTICLE IT IS THIS

Going to trial without practicing your opening statement? So why not spend time rehearsing the part of the trial where you talk to the jurors first? If you don’t practice your voir dire, why not? If you do, do you practice with people in the room? If you practice with people in the room, are these laymen? If these are lay people in the room, do you ask their opinion? If you ask them for feedback, do you apply it to selecting your jury for trial?

The bottom line is that your voir dire, not your opening statement, is when you make your first impression on the jury. Make the most of the opportunity. Practice, refine your voir dire.