by: Hayes Hunt and Calli Varner On June 18, 2012, the Supreme Court came down with a fractured 5-4 decision disrupting long-standing 6th Amendment Confrontation Clause precedent as it applies to forensic evidence. Williams v. Illinois, No. 10-8505 (June 18,…
Blog Archives
The Supreme Court’s Confrontation with Forensic Evidence: Williams v. Illinois
Tagged with: 6th Amendment, Confrontation Clause, Cross Examination, DNA testing, Evidence, Expert Testimony, SCOTUS
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
Juror Misconduct & Bias – Social Media Investigation
by: Hayes Hunt and Jonathan A. Cavalier Use of social media to explore the histories and potential biases of a jury pool is relatively new, but it is rapidly gaining in popularity. While voir dire can be an effective tool…
Roger Clemens Trial – Jurors Question Witnesses
by Hayes Hunt and Brian Kint Jurors in Roger Clemens’ perjury case submitted 29 questions that they want to ask the prosecution’s chief witness, Brian McNamee. Among the questions: “Why should we believe you when you have shown so many…
Andy Pettitte’s “50-50” Testimony – Roger Clemens’ Trial
by: Hayes Hunt and Brian Kint Federal prosecutors in Roger Clemens’ perjury trial may have made a costly error after Andy Pettitte testified that he was “50-50” about a conversation he had with Clemens regarding his use of human growth…
Tagged with: Andy Pettitte, Federal Rule of Evidence 607, FRE 401, HGH, Roger Clemens
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
How Jurors Decide — Witness Credibility
By Benjamin E. Zuckerman How do jurors reach their verdicts? It’s simple: they vote for the party whose witnesses they like best. Early in my career, I handled a criminal defense matter. The client had been charged with burglarizing a…
Posted in Trial
Using Social Media to Track Juror’s Online Postings
By Thomas G. Wilkinson, Jr. and Lindsey E. Wilkinson Just as lawyers now routinely conduct due diligence on opposing parties’ social media pages (see our July 20 Sidebar post), some lawyers also are monitoring postings by jurors on social media…
Tagged with: Due Dillgence, Facebook, From the Sideabr, Hayes Hunt, Juror Misconduct, Jurors, Jury, Mistrial, Social Media, Social Media Law, Thomas Wilkinson, Trial, Trial Practice, Twitter law
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
The “W” Words of Direct Examination
By Benjamin E. Zuckerman As any trial lawyer knows, direct exams are often more difficult than cross. During cross-examination you are in charge. You make the witness tell your story by asking her leading questions that let you control the…
Witness Preparation – Ask Your Questions. Get the Right Answer
Witness preparation is one of the most important components of trial and litigation practice. A simple but overlooked part of preparation is asking your witness your actual questions. You may have two or twenty essential questions that you must ask…
Tagged with: Coaching, Cozen O'Connor, Deposition, From the Sidebar, Hayes Hunt, Questions and Answers, Trial, Witness Preparation
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
Galleon Trial: Declawing Cross Examination
Last week during the insider-trading trial of Raj Rajaratnam, the defense called Rick Schutte, Galleon’s former president of U.S. operations. Chad Bray of the Wall Street Journal wrote an informative article “Questions Over Defense Move: A Witness for Rajaratnam…
Tagged with: Chad Bray, Cozen O'Connor, Credibility, Crime, Direct Examination, Federal Rule of Evidence 607, Galleon Group, Hayes Hunt, Insider Trading, Investment Fund, Jury, Litigation, Raj Rajaratnam, Rick Shutte, Trial, Wall Street Journal
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
One Last Question.
I recently attended a large event with a room filled with lawyers and judges. One of the award recipients made the mistake of telling the audience that his acceptance speech was going to be quick and short. It wasn’t. Judges started to talk amongst themselves,…
Tagged with: Attorney, Hayes Hunt, Judges, Jurors, Jury, Lawyers, Public Speaking, Trial Practice
Posted in Trial
Posted in Trial
