Experts are experts in their subject matter, but not
necessarily experts at testifying, as many a lawyer has found out at trial,
much to his/her dismay.
One way to make sure your expert testifies in a way that
will persuade the jurors, is to have your expert formulate "umbrella
statements." These are statements that give an overview of what is to
follow.
For example, an expert might begin with the umbrella
statement "Upon examination, I found significant differences between X and
Y," rather than launching immediately into a description of the features
of X, not mentioning Y until 10 minutes later, and not discussing the
differences between the two until another 10 minutes has elapsed. Jurors need
to be guided. Without the benefit of an "umbrella statement," jurors
don't know what they should be listening for. Your expert's excellent points
may be lost in the clutter.
Another way is to have your experts bottom line key points
as they conclude a given
segment of testimony. Phrases such as "To sum it all
up," or "What this means is" are helpful in introducing a
concise, condensed, easy-to-remember version of
the critical point just made.
With a jury, clarity and easy-to-grasp concepts/points make
for the best testimony.
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