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The Impact of Jury Consulting

Jury selection is one of the most important functions of a trial lawyer. One unfavorable juror can ruin a panel and cost you a verdict. This is why it is of utmost importance to have a panel of jurors who are genuinely committed to following the instructions of the court, following the law, and making the decision in a case based on the evidence that is presented to them in the courtroom – and only the evidence that is presented in the courtroom – without allowing outside factors to influence them. It can be difficult to determine who these jurors are, but jury consulting helps discern them.

Jury selection is the only opportunity you have to uncover good and bad jurors, so it’s important to know how to spot them. Jury consulting helps discern the different jurors by preparing questions in advance and further testing those questions in focus groups. 

The Impact of Jury Consulting

Jury selection is one of the most important functions of a trial lawyer. One unfavorable juror can ruin a panel and cost you a verdict. This is why it is of utmost importance to have a panel of jurors who are genuinely committed to following the instructions of the court, following the law, and making the decision in a case based on the evidence that is presented to them in the courtroom – and only the evidence that is presented in the courtroom – without allowing outside factors to influence them. It can be difficult to determine who these jurors are, but jury consulting helps discern them.

Jury selection is the only opportunity you have to discover good and bad jurors, so it’s important to know how to spot them. Jury consulting helps discern the different jurors by preparing questions in advance and further testing those questions in focus groups. 

Connect the Dots

There can be a large disconnect for lawyers who walk into a courtroom to conduct jury selection and haven’t even looked at their questions. The lawyers just go through a list and hope they can spot problematic jurors, but it’s a very blindfolded situation. Many lawyers also attempt to rely on outdated research myths instead of conducting their own research on attitudes, perspectives and opinions. It is vital to match jury selection questions to the specifics of the case, which is an aspect of jury consulting Elizabeth can help with.

Curious what Elizabeth thinks?

For the past two years, Elizabeth has hosted the podcast Trial Lawyer Prep and talked about the aspect of jury consulting.

Here are three episodes to learn more about Elizabeth’s thoughts on jury selection:

How Trial Lawyer Elizabeth Larrick Can Help

Elizabeth has been through every aspect of the trial process, worked with the best of the best, and has years of personal experience as a trial lawyer herself which have given her a well-rounded knowledge on what lawyers can do to best prepare for their case.

FAQs

Who can you help?

Elizabeth works with plaintiff personal injury, employment and commercial litigators. 

What services does jury consulting provide?

There are various aspects that jury consulting can cover to help you prepare for jury selection and build your skill set for questioning and responding with a jury panel. Some services include:

  • Focus Groups
  • Question Preparation
  • Develop Case Themes
  • Observation during trial

Will you travel / come to me?

Yes, I can travel to you.

Why use a jury consultant?

Elizabeth has experience communicating and listening to 1,000s of focus groups, which in turn gives her the ability to assist lawyers in doing the same with voir dire. Instead of conducting 1,000s of focus groups yourself, you can use Elizabeth’s brain.