By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm: Cause challenges play an important role in jury selection. When a potential juror has an acknowledged barrier to basing their decision on a neutral understanding of the evidence and the law, they should not serve. However, when lawyers are exploring potential cause issues, I often see them taking an approach that […]
By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm: Will the individuals who serve on your jury be the same people they were before they were called for service and selected? Will they have the same mental habits and preferences they exhibit in their civilian lives outside the courthouse? Will they be the same people they portray themselves to be […]
Imagine an attorney going over her notes before oral argument. She already has a solid set of reasons lined up and then decides to add one more argument that has been a little controversial within the team: some like it, but most think it is weak. Flash forward to the judge’s hearing on the […]
By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm: America’s civil litigation system can sometimes look a little like class warfare. On one side — often, but not always the defense — there will be an organization and a group of individuals who enjoy substantially more wealth than those on the other side. So what do we think about the […]
By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm: These are trying times for those of us who are looking to see whether American rule of law can survive its current challenges. As our executive branch tests the limits of Congressional authority, and bucks the traditions of judicial review, the question that’s up in the air at the moment is […]
By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm: As a witness prepares to testify in trial, the big fear is often cross-examination. While the direct questioning by the witness’s own attorney is seen as the “easy part” (friendly, open-ended questions that allow you to “tell your story”), the cross-examination by the opposing counsel is seen as far more threatening […]
By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm: We live in uncertain times, and that is becoming a more obvious observation by the day. From the turmoil in the financial markets to the tumult in the marketplaces of ideas, there is a widely felt lack of security, predictability, stability, and foundation: We don’t feel particularly safe. The idea that […]
By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm: A couple of weeks ago, I was in court to help pick a jury in a high-value case. During that early phase of jury selection, the gallery was full to capacity with potential jurors, the counsel and parties were present, the clerks bustling, but not much else was happening. As we […]
By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm: Everyone who works with our court systems, including those who work in civil litigation, are invested in the idea of rule of law. Whether our case has to do with governmental powers or not, whether it involves civil rights or not, the procedure and the trial are parts of a noble […]
By Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm: Everyone who works with our court systems, including those who work in civil litigation, are invested in the idea of rule of law. Whether our case has to do with governmental powers or not, whether it involves civil rights or not, the procedure and the trial are parts of a noble […]