Prepping An Angry Witness For Trial

Oct. 19, 2010 - PRLog -- LOS ANGELES, CALIF.--When gearing up for trial, prepping an angry witness can be a daunting task, says Dr. Noelle Nelson, a trial consultant for more than 20 years for both plaintiff and defense.

   "An angry witness can be angry for any number of reasons," says Nelson. They are angry clients who are upset the matter did not settle or that it is even come to litigation. They are witnesses who are furious about being called to testify. They may be witnesses who have healed or substantially recovered from the incident at issue and resent having to reopen old wounds."

   When prepping these kinds of witnesses for trial, Nelson says to expect them to show just how unhappy and aggravated they are. "You want to immediately get down to the business of prep, but they're so emotional, the process is stymied."

   Instead of diving right into preparation when a witness is angry, Nelson suggests trying a different approach. "People in highly charged emotional states need first to have their emotions thoroughly acknowledged. They can then clear their minds and hearts sufficiently to think rationally."

Nelson offers this technique:

   Reflect your witness’s emotions. Acknowledge that it is frustrating having to testify. Let the witness respond with an emotional salvo. Follow with something like “This has been really hard on you.” By now, the witness will have calmed down some because you are not resisting the emotion, you’re acknowledging it. The acknowledgement is done in third-person, non-inflammatory terms. Once you sense that the witness is less angry, you are ready to open the prep session with the use of the word “and,” such as, “And that’s why we’re here today--to prepare you so the jurors can understand your perspective.”  

   "More than anything," says Nelson, "emotionally wrought people want just one thing--to be genuinely heard."

   For more trial techniques, go to Nelson's blog, "A Winning Tip," http://awinningtip.blogspot.com, or for her articles and books, http://www.noellenelson.com/Trial_Consulting.cfm.

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Noelle C. Nelson, Ph.D. is a nationally respected trial consultant who provides trial/jury strategy, witness preparation and focus groups to attorneys. Since 2000, she has helped win more than $500 million for her plaintiff clients. Her defense clients have saved millions more. Go to http://awinningtip.blogspot.com for her monthly newsletter, or for her articles and books, http://www.noellenelson.com/Trial_Consulting.cfm.