WITNESS PREPARATION
Case 1: Mr. J.V.

We were called in on a case where a client, Mr. J.V., had undercut his own deposition by trying to "trick" the opposing counsel and evade questions. Mr. J.V.'s boss had advised him to try to distract the plaintiff's lawyer from his line of questioning and to avoid all substantive answers. J.V. spent the deposition arguing with the attorney, evading every question, and interrupting the meeting to break for various personal business.

The end effect was that Mr. J.V. was disagreeable, arrogant, and evasive on record - so evasive that he lost his own train of thought. J.V.'s answers were contradictory, and he omitted answers that would have helped his cause. What was a very "winable" case became dangerously "lose-able."

Mr. J.V.'s attorney hired ON TRIAL to prepare Mr. J.V. for the arbitration hearing. He asked us to help Mr. J.V. stop the tricks and repair the damage done at deposition. His problem was not substantive but emotional and psychological. He felt he could outwit the other side and best them.

We worked with him on developing his own strengths and his own strongest testimony. We got him away from his negative focus on a relationship with opposing counsel and changed the way he related to him. We helped him see the case from his own expert eyes and from the contemporaneous point of view.

We rehearsed Mr. J.V. on the difficult parts of the case so that he could rely on himself to say what he wanted to say. And we helped him to listen to each question, respond directly - not evasively - and with clarity.

At the arbitration hearing, plaintiff's attorney was prepared for an argumentative, cold, and evasive businessman. Instead, what he got was a clear, sympathetic, helpful teacher. The opposing counsel became flummoxed and had to abandon his attack strategy on the spot.

One hour defense verdict. No appeal entered.

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