Closing Arguments: Focus and Organization
Closing Argument: Opportunity and Challenge
How to Make Clear, Quick and Effective Objections
More on Cross-Examination: Building a Case Brick by Brick
Podcast - Cross-Examination: Don't Ask One Question Too Many
Podcast - The Ten Commandments of Cross-Examination
Podcast - Refresh vs. Impeach: Know the Difference
The Justice Insiders Podcast: Jarkesy’s Implications for the Administrative State
Podcast - Cross-Examination of Expert Witnesses
Cross-Examination: The Three C’s of Impeachment
Cross-Examination: How to Effectively Impeach with a Prior Inconsistent Statement
Cross-Examination: Finding Control
DE Under 3: OFCCP Must Shut Down its Administrative Court Prosecutions as a Result of SCOTUS’ SEC Jury Trial Case Decision
Podcast - Cross-Examination: Don't Argue - Elicit Facts
Cross-Examination: Asking the Right Leading Questions
Podcast - Cross-Examination: The Importance of Organization
Understanding When to Cross-Examine
Podcast - Cross-Examination: Basic Approaches
The "Why" of Cross-Examination
Basic Points to Consider in Redirect Examination
Courts across the country are temporarily suspending jury trials amid the Omicron variant wave. Prior to that surge, many jurisdictions had resumed criminal and civil jury trials with health and safety protocols. ...more
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in early 2020, the legal profession responded with a one-two punch. The first response was to fashion emergency procedures that enabled courts to function during the pandemic and, if...more
“We have a verdict!” The familiar cry from the court officer echoes through the empty hallways of the Middlesex Superior Court in Woburn as I sit alone trying to focus on accumulated emails. Scrambling to my feet, I...more
Delaware has one of the most active federal civil trial dockets in the country. On Monday, it issued this notice: In short, Delaware is back...more
COVID-19 has ushered in a new era for litigation in the Commercial Division. Here are the key developments litigants should be aware of. Remote Appearances and No Paper Copies - In May 2020, e-filing in the Commercial...more
On Wednesday, Judge James Selna of the US District Court for the Central District of California issued an order continuing a jury trial that was set for June 1. The order is worth reading in its entirety:...more
In the US District Court for the Western District of Texas, Judge Alan Albright’s closely watched patent trial is underway...more
Alas, the trip has been a long one. It’s frustrating to feel that any destination — whether it’s the end of a long family road trip or a return to in-person court proceedings — is just around a corner that never seems to...more
Due to the pandemic, the District Court entered an Order today cancelling all criminal and civil jury trials in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware until on or after April 5, 2021...more
Here’s the headline from yesterday’s Palm Beach Post: “Jury trials begin again in Palm Beach County as coronavirus infections continue to rise.” Palm Beach County will begin holding jury trials for both criminal and civil...more
We return now to Judge Amos Mazzant’s federal courtroom in Sherman, Texas. COVID-19 caused a mistrial last year, when jurors, lawyers and court staff become infected mid-trial. We covered it, most recently...more
Americans are asking: “We know about Georgia’s elections, but what about its courts?” We’re here to tell you. On Friday, the Georgia Supreme Court extended its prohibition on jury trials. The order notes that when the...more
Since March 2020, jury trials have been suspended at varying times in the six New England states – Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Due to the recent spike in COVID-19 infections...more
Requests for COVID-19-related trial delays can lead to strife between lawyers and judges—and crazy things can happen. We see this most recently in San Bernadino, California, where a civil jury trial has been interrupted in...more
Readers will remember our coverage of the November trial in Eastern District of Texas, Sherman Division, which ended in a mistrial after jurors, court staff, and lawyers on both sides contracted COVID-19. The trial judge,...more
A vaccine is on the way, but jury trials are not—at least not in many places. Yesterday Indiana suspended all jury trials in the state until March. North Carolina froze nearly all in-person court proceedings through at least...more
Last week saw differing approaches to the pandemic in South Carolina. In the state court system, Chief Justice Don Beatty suspended all state civil and criminal jury trials, finding “that in light of the ongoing increase in...more
In Charlotte, North Carolina, the Superior Court for Mecklenburg County attempted to hold its first pandemic jury trial, starting November 16. Things did not go well. First, during the evidence phase, a jury was excused...more
On Monday we summarized the various district court orders shutting down jury trials. But events are outpacing us...more
What will we write about when all the courts have closed? We are rapidly on the way to finding out, especially in the federal system...more
On Monday, Chief Judge Janet DiFiore issued a statement on the latest developments affecting jury trials in New York City....more
As detailed in our September 21, 2020 alert, the SJC previously implemented a structure for reintroducing jury trials in Massachusetts state courts beginning as early as October 23, 2020. Unfortunately, that goal has hit its...more
The jury trial is just one of the many aspects of American life that has been upended by the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 12, 2020, the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts entered an order postponing all jury...more
There’s something that judges will often tell potential jurors at the start of the voir dire process: “We know jury duty is an inconvenience, but it is a necessary duty.” But what if it is more than an inconvenience? What if...more
In mid-June, Chief Judge Janet DiFiore appointed the Commission to Reimagine the Future of New York’s Courts, and charged it with examining technological, regulatory, and other long-term innovations for New York Courts. ...more