Baltimore Injury Lawyer Blog

Trucking Accidents: You're Already Behind

Wed, 16 May 2012 06:00:00 -0500

Experienced truck accident lawyers know that when beginning to investigate a new matter, it is extremely important to hit the ground running. Why? Because the moment the client signs the retainer, you are already behind. Most likely, you are significantly behind.

Why? Because the trucking company and its’ defense team had a head start. The lawyers who defend trucking companies with regularity have a 24 hour crash line (ok, an associate with a cell phone) for the company to call immediately after the crash. As soon as dispatch knows there has been an accident, they call the number. Once the lawyer gets the call, they hustle to get somebody out to the scene. They call a reconstructionist who will be able to get there while the evidence is fresh and undisturbed. They get the vehicles and the scene photographed, and they get an investigator moving to obtain statements from the witnesses. This has all most likely happened before the injured person even thinks to call a lawyer.

On the other side, let’s assume the accident victim is badly injured. He’s in the hospital for two weeks. After he stabilizes, he begins the search for a personal injury lawyer. After talking with a few lawyers, he takes another week to decide which one he likes best and to sign a retainer. At that point, the lawyer has only had a client to represent for 5 minutes, and he’s already 3 weeks behind the defense in his investigation.

The victim’s lawyer needs to start moving right away if he ever hopes to catch up to the other side. And that’s if it’s possible to catch up. Three weeks after the accident, debris may have been cleaned up, skid marks may have washed away, vehicles may have been repaired and put back in service (or destroyed), witnesses have probably already given statements at the prompting of insurance investigators, the truck driver has certainly been briefed by insurance representatives and/or lawyers, and the vehicle data recorders have most likely been erased or reset and the information they contained is gone forever.

Experienced truck accident lawyers (like, well, you know) know this, and have a plan in place to start catching up to the defense investigation as soon as the injury victim signs their retainer agreement. So I have decided to do a series of blog posts detailing what I think are some of the most important steps in beginning to investigate a trucking accident that caused a serious injury. Keep an eye out for the first post in the series, which will be going up in the next weeks or so.

Don't Forget About Your Witnesess When the Case Settles

Wed, 02 May 2012 06:00:00 -0500

I just reached a settlement in a case that was set for trial next week. Obviously that is great news for my client, who now has some closure on a difficult period in his life.

But memorializing the agreement and having the clerk remove the case from the docket doesn’t mean the end of my job when it comes to settlement.

I had subpoenaed three witnesses to appear for trial: an independent “bystander” witness, a traffic engineer from the State Highway Administration, and a police officer. I made sure to contact each of these witnesses as soon as the case resolved to let them know they would not need to appear. They really appreciated that I let them know. The traffic engineer in particular made it a point to let me know how often attorneys subpoena witnesses from his office and then do not let them know when the case settles. Then they travel to court for nothing.

I can’t believe that. It’s just unprofessional, and arguably violates Md. Rule 2-510(h), which states that “[a] party or an attorney responsible for the issuance and service of a subpoena shall take reasonable steps to avoid imposing undue burden or cost on a person subject to the subpoena.” As far as I’m concerned, not telling a witness under subpoena that the case settled and they don’t have to appear causes the witness “undue burden or cost.”

So just a reminder, when your case settles right before trial, make sure to notify the witnesses. That way you can save them the hassle and missed time from work of showing up at court for no reason.

New Federal Safety Regulation Bans Handheld Cell Phones for Commerical Drivers

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 06:00:00 -0500

We all know that distracted driving is one of the leading causes of motor vehicle accidents. At this point most lawyers handling car and truck accident injury cases are asking questions in interrogatories and at depositions about possible distractions from electronic devices, cell phones in particular. Many states, including Maryland, prohibit all drivers from using hand-held cell phones. Now the feds have followed suit, imposing a similar rule for drivers of commercial vehicles (mostly tractor-trailers).

Scott Turner’s Truck Crash Blotter has a post discussing the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) ban on hand-held cell phones that went into effect in January, 2012. The new rule applies to all drivers who drive routes through more than one state, and to drivers who operate only in one state if they are carrying hazardous materials.

There is a very important point in Scott’s blog post for lawyers handling truck accident cases in states without a hand-held cell phone ban. You might think that if the motor carrier defendant is operating only intrastate and not carrying hazmats, neither state law nor the new regulation would prohibit handheld cell phone use. But you might be wrong.

Many states incorporate the FMCSA safety regs into state law either explicitly or by reference. Maryland does this- the cite is COMAR 11.21.01.02. It specifically adopts the FMCSA regulations found at 49 C.F.R. 390-393, which includes the handheld cell phone band, which is 49 C.F.R. 392.82. So if we didn’t already have a state-wide ban on handheld cell phone use, the federal regulation would still apply to tractor-trailers and most other commercial vehicles. Good to know, especially if you happen to be handling truck accident injury cases in a state without an existing ban on using handheld electronic devices. Of course, Maryland lawyers should not forget that the same COMAR section also incorporates many other useful FMSCA safety regulations on topics like vehicle operation and maintenance, and driver conduct, qualifications and hiring.

Scott’s post also advocates carriers implementing a training course on distracted driving. He makes some good points in favor of this. Perhaps this is something to think about having your expert address if you are making a negligent training claim against a motor carrier in a distracted driving case.

Is Being A Bad Lawyer An Ethical Violation?

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 06:00:00 -0500

The Legal Profession Blog has a post linking to a lawyer discipline case from New York where an attorney was suspended for two years after being sanctioned by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Even after the two years is up, he can only practice again after the entry of a court order allowing it.

This is a pretty serious sanction. What did he do? Steal from a client? Miss a filing deadline? Get a criminal conviction? Was he a tax cheat? Nope. He got suspended for being a terrible lawyer. The court noted that on multiple occasions he had submitted briefs of “shockingly poor quality.” Things like getting the names of his clients wrong, including irrelevant boilerplate, referencing evidence that was never submitted, and filing the work of a paralegal without reviewing it.

I am so happy to see a court take a stand like this. My practice is 100% litigation, and you would not believe the astonishingly poor quality of some of the written material I see submitted to both trial and appellate courts. I’m not talking about proofreading or citation errors. Everybody makes a mistake sometimes. I mean stuff so appalling that it is clear that no attempt was made to edit or even read it before filing.

I have a case now where opposing counsel has filed papers with the court certifying that pleadings and discovery were served on me three weeks before the date they were actually mailed to me. When I got them, they were unsigned and turned out to be mostly gibberish. The best part, and I swear to God I am not making this up, is that they were printed in the Comic Sans typeface. I asked twice, in writing, for the filing to be corrected so the court knew the correct dates I received the material. Nothing. It’s the most astonishing thing I’ve seen in 14 years practicing law. I’m now awaiting a ruling on my second motion for sanctions.

I wish courts were more active in policing this kind of thing. But the reality is that most of the time nothing gets done about it unless the behavior is particularly egregious or it is repeated often enough that eventually a judge ends up getting really mad.

A Few Quick Hits

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 06:00:00 -0500

Here are just a few things from around the web that I thought were interesting:

THR, Esq. comments on Teller, of Penn & Teller fame suing another magician for ripping off one of his tricks. The best part of the whole thing is the illustration Teller provided when he copyrighted the trick. Awesome. I've seen Penn & Teller, and they rule. To show how they appreciate the audience, after every show they wait in the lobby and meet everyone, sign autographs and pose for pictures. It's worth every penny of your entertainment dollar. Anyway, they could make that dollar disappear whether you liked it or not, if they wanted to. Just be glad they let you see the show instead.

Can an undocumented immigrant be admitted to the Florida Bar? Everyone's knee-jerk reaction is probably to say no, but here's the thing: there's no rule against it.

Another vote in favor of cooperation among members of the bar- when opposing counsel asks for an extension, think about saying yes. They might get appointed to the bench

Jay O'Keefe has an engaging discussion of an article on Ten Questions You Must Be Prepared to Answer Before Oral Argument, with a hat tip to the BILB!

George Zimmerman's lawyers have asked the judge to recuse herself. Apparently, her husband is partners with an attorney who was approached to represent Zimmerman, declined, referred him to his current lawyer, and now has been hired by CNN to comment on the case. I don't know if that creates the quote, unquote "apppearance of impropriety," but I do know that if I were the judge, I'd be happy to kick that traveling circus down the road. I wonder how Lance Ito's doing now?

Defense Requests for Medical Authorizations

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 06:00:00 -0500

One thing I am seeing defense attorneys do more and more is using a Md. Rule 2-422 Request for Production to try to get plaintiffs to sign authorization forms permitting the defense to access medical and other information without a subpoena. For them, it’s a more efficient (some might say lazy) way to obtain the same material they could get by serving a subpoena on the person who has whatever records they want. For plaintiffs, it’s allowing the defense free license to root through anything they want without worrying about the protections afforded plaintiffs under the Maryland Rules and the Health General Code.

Since I see this so often, I imagine there must be personal injury lawyers out there who allow their clients to sign them. Other personal injury lawyers, that is. Not me or the lawyers in my firm.

Now, I’m a reasonable man. I’m not saying that there are no circumstances where I will allow a client to sign a defense authorization. In some cases I don’t have a choice. In first party claims against an insurance carrier for UM/UIM benefits, for example, the carrier often has a contractual right to obtain an authorization written into the policy. Or if the records being sought are maintained out of state (and therefore outside the subpoena power of a Maryland court) I will often agree to an authorization, as long as it includes appropriate limitations that I have approved in advance, like excluding records about mental health, substance abuse, or STD/HIV/AIDS treatment. If they don’t agree to my requested conditions, they are welcome to get an out-of-state subpoena issued the hard way.

I don’t believe in making opposing counsel’s life difficult just for the heck of it, although sometimes it’s tempting. But I would be remiss if I gave away my clients’ privacy protections under the law for no good reason, and that is what I would be doing by allowing my clients to sign these broadly-drafted defense authorizations.

Here is one of these requests that I just received, and my response:

REQUEST NO. 20: The Plaintiff is required to execute the attached Medical Release Authorization form and the Employment Records Release authorization form so that the Defendant may obtain any and all documents requested not currently in possession of the Plaintiff, the Plaintiff’s agents, or the Plaintiff’s attorneys.

RESPONSE: No, she’s not.

Yes, that was my actual response. I won’t deny I’m a smartass, but it’s also legally accurate.

Another Good Tip for Structuring an Apellate Brief

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 06:00:00 -0500

One thing I always try to do when I am writing an appellate brief to to use the Table of Contents as an outline of the argument. If you can read the TOC and you don't know my basic argument by the time you're finished, I've failed. I use each section heading as a summary of the argument and each sub-heading as a summary of the main points in support. My thinking has always been that appellate courts are busy, and that making your argument concise, accessible and easy to understand is a great way to make it easy for the court to rule in your favor. It's just good advocacy.

Jay O'Keefe's Virginia appellate blog De Novo has a summary of a talk at The Greenbrier Resort given by Justice LeRoy F. Millette, Jr. of the Supreme Court of Virginia. Maryland and New York are the only states I know of where the highest court is called the Court of Appeals, and where its members are judges not justices. Maybe there are others, I've never really checked.

But anyway, Justice Millette says that a brief should be organized in "clear, outline format." Jay agrees, adding that "it is helpful to include descriptive subject headings that reflect the outline organization of the brief." Not only is this approach helpful from an advocacy standpoint, but it also allows nearly instant reference to any point made in the brief or oral argument.

Also, I love Jay's description of The Greenbrier: "seizure-inducing, Technicolor grandeur." I've stayed there, and it looked like Laura Ashley threw up in my room. It is located in the beautiful West Virginia mountains. Interestingly, in the 1950's it had a giant bunker underneath where the U.S. Congress would be evacuated in the event of a nuclear attack. Now, they offer tours of the bunker. If I went back there, it would be to go see that.

OK, Who Needs A Nap?

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 06:00:00 -0500

One thing we all know is that we aren't as sharp when we are tired as we are when we are well-rested.

That's why some occupations have rules about on-duty hours, truck drivers for example. There are federal regulations governing how many hours professional drivers can work. Working in violation of these limitations could be considered evidence of negligence in many circumstances.

Even in the private sector, the Maryland Depatment of Transportation's Motor Vehicle Administration requires drivers to inform the MVA's Medical Advisory Board when they are diagnosed with certain sleep-related medical disorders, like sleep apnea or narcolepsy. "The objective of the MAB is to assess medical fitness to drive of individuals who have medical conditions that can impact on their ability to safely operate a motor vehicle." I think we can all agree that sleep deprivation can be a major factor affecting the abilty to drive a car or truck, or operate heavy machinery.

So it was with great interest that I saw this feature in the Baltimore Sun listing the top ten most sleep deprived professions. The list was put together by Sleepy's Mattress retailers using data compiled in the CDC's National Health Interview Survey. The top 10:

Home health aides
Lawyers
Police Officers
Physicians/paramedics
Economists
Social Workers
Computer Programmers
Financial Analysts
Plant Operators
Secretaries

I dont know if they were listed in order. I'm not surprised at some of these. Policemen, doctors, paramedics and plant workers often work odd shifts because they are in fields where they operate 24 hours a day. It did surprise me that economists and secretaries made the list.

Maybe all of the lawyers reading this (myself included) should make trying to get more or better rest a focus, lest we end up on the wrong side of the "v" as a result of our fatigue.

What to Do When Your Expert is a D.O.?

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 05:00:00 -0500

Putting a bad pun in the title is always a great start to a blog post, right? Try the veal, I'm here all week.

But seriously, proving medical causation of an injury in a personal injury case nearly always requires expert medical testimony. There a few exceptions for objective injuries that would be obvious to a layperson (like cuts and bruises), but generally proving medical causation requires a physician to testify that within a reasonable degree of medical probability, the injury or medcial condition was causally related to the accident.

The most obvious source of this testimony is the plaintiff's treating physician. There are strengths and weaknesses in using a treating physician as an expert witness. One of these can be that since you generally do not choose the treating physician, you are stuck with their qualifications, however good or bad they may be.

This issue can arise when the treating physician turns out to hold the degree of Doctor of Osteopathy rather than Medical Doctor. When this happens, it is a natural area of cross examination. Juries expect physicians and expert medical witnesses to be M.D.'s, and tend to be skeptical when they are not.

One way to try and remedy this is to point out that in practice, this is a distinction without a difference. On direct (and perhaps in cross-examination of the defense expert) illustrate the commonalities between the holders of the two degrees.

A few days ago, I happened to come across Declaratory Ruling 97-1 of the Maryland Board of Physician Quality Assurance. It contains a paragraph that neatly explains the many similarities and singular difference between the two degrees:

"According to Education of the Osteopathic Physician, a publication of the
American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, both doctors of medicine
and doctors of osteopathy are physicians who have taken a prescribed amount of
premedical training, graduated from an undergraduate college, and received four years
of training in a medical school. They both use scientifically accepted methods of
diagnosis and treatment, and are often licensed by the same state medical board. The
philosophical difference is the osteopathic profession's emphasis on the importance of
the musculoskeletal system in health and disease and the development and uses of
manipulative diagnosis and treatment."

It is easy to see how this kind of information can be useful in putting together a list of questions that may help in ameliorate any credibility issues that may arise with a witness who holds a D.O. degree. These are all things that would be very difficult for a defense expert to deny on cross.

I'm going to save a .pdf copy of this ruling to use in the next case where my treating physician expert is a D.O. I will have to remember to let you know how it turns out. Does anyone else out there have experience with this issue? How did you handle it?

A Referring Lawyer's Thoughts on Co-Counseling With M&Z

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 10:00:14 -0500

If you have been injured in a car or truck accident in Maryland, it is easy to find a lawyer to take your case. Just about every general practice lawyer in the state handles auto accident cases to some extent, and can usually do a good job. But sometimes these lawyers get involved in cases that can't be settled, and they may not have the experience or resources to take the case to trial.

That's where we come in. We get involved in a lot of cases as referrals from other lawyers under Rule 1.5 fee-sharing agreements. The referring lawyer can stay as involved in the case as they wish- it can be a straight referral, or they can stay in the case through trial.

The best way for you to find out about what co-counseling with M&Z is like is directly from one of our referring lawyers. Here's what one of our referring lawyers had to say about a case that I got involved in about 60 days before trial:

I have a general practice law firm and I also do personal injury work, mainly auto accidents. I have tried a number of District Court cases but I had never done a personal injury jury trial in the Circuit Court. I had an auto accident case that had to be brought in the Circuit Court. I was hoping that after discovery, etc. I would receive a reasonable offer from the defendant to settle the case since liability seemed pretty clear; a rear-end case. However, the defendant was a self-insured taxi company and, probably sensing my inexperience in the Circuit Court, would not make any offer to settle. At that point, I decided to contact Miller & Zois to see if I could get them to co-counsel with me on the case. Even though it was late in the game, I received a call promptly from Attorney John Bratt. Miller & Zois then agreed to co-counsel with me and they gave me the option to stay involved or let them take over all the way. I chose to stay involved. It was a great learning experience for me.

Mr. Bratt is an excellent attorney and a great teacher. I was pleased with the way he handled the case, his willingness to share his knowledge and to explain the rationale behind the things he did. I was also impressed with the way he took the time to understand the case, his timeliness in appearances before the Court (he was always early, never just on time) and his composure and delivery in Court. His approach to the case was to present our strongest evidence for damages and avoid presenting evidence that would sidetrack the jury and weaken our case.

Just before trial the Defendants’ attorney, a good defense attorney, predicted that “on our best day we could not recover more than 2 times specials” when I replied that stranger things have happened; he said “stranger things may happen; but not in Montgomery County Circuit Court.” When the jury returned a verdict for our client for almost 6 times the specials; you could have heard a pin drop in the Court room. Needless to say, I was very pleased with the outcome and with my decision to co-counsel with Miller & Zois, and in particular, for the excellent work and skills of Mr. Bratt. I would recommend Miller & Zois highly to any attorney that may need assistance in a personal injury matter.

Elton F. Norman
The Norman Law Firm, PLLC
Silver Spring, Maryland

So if you find yourself needing experienced trial counsel for a car or truck acccident case, consider contacting our law firm. We are happy to review referral matters form other attorneys.

Using Safety Rules in Truck and Car Accidents

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 09:12:30 -0500

I have written in the past that a trucking accident case is much more than an auto accident case with a bigger vehicle involved. Lawyers representing people injured in trucking accidents need to consider the different agency relationships that may be involved between the driver, owner/lessor/lessee of the vehicle, as well as the causes of action and/or insurance issues that arise out of those relationships.

Another difference is that trucks are perceived to be more dangerous on the road than standard automobiles. They are bigger and heavier, have more and bigger "blind spots", and are operated by drivers who may have fatigue issues from spending hours and hours in the driver's seat. Most drivers/jurors have had at least one terrifying personal experience out on the road as a result of an encounter with a big rig.

In fact, I nearly had one take me out on my way to work this morning. In rush hour traffic on I-695, the truck was weaving in and out of traffic (always a great idea) and came into my lane without checking to see if it was safe. Since I was on the driver's side, this can only mean that the driver never checked his mirror before coming over. We've all seen those signs on trucks that say "if you can't see my mirrors, I can't see you." Well, I could see this guy's mirrors, which makes me think he would have seen me if he had looked. Thankfully, I was able to avoid a collision, but I am confident the driver had no idea I was there until he heard my horn.

Because of the real and perceived dangerousness of these vehicles to other drivers, personal injury cases involving tractor-trailers are ripe for a "Reptile/Rules of the Road" approach. Sidebar: if you are handling personal injury cases and you have not read Don Keenan and David Ball's "Reptile" or Rick Friedman and Pat Malone's "Rules of the Road", you should 1) not tell anybody; and 2) read them right now.

Here is a link to Don Keenan's blog explaining how to begin to formulate "Rules" that are simple, easy to understand, and that will resonate with your jury. Using the example from my morning commute, a Rule might say "Tractor-trailer drivers must be sure the way is clear before changing lanes, to protect other motorists on the roadway." These can be drafted many different ways, and doing so is definitely an acquired skill. How would you draft the appropriate Rule for this situation?

Appellate Mediation?

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 21:01:07 -0500

In the past, I have written about alternative dispute resolution as a means for resolving personal injury cases before trial. Well, there is a new article out in the Maryland Bar Journal about how mediation is being used to resolve cases on appeal in the Court of Special Appeals.

I never thought that mediation would be useful on appeal, because an appeal by its very nature involves two parties with entrenched positions on opposite sides of a legal issue. I guess I was wrong, because according to the article, 69% of the cases that go through the Court's appellate mediation program settle.

I have only had one of my appeals go through the mediation program. My case didn't settle, but I thought it was a useful process. They use two mediators, a retired judge and an attorney mediator from the Court's mediation office. In my case, they were both well prepared and up-to-speed on the law involved. The process wasn't the reason my case didn't settle. But the plus side is that now I et to argue the appeal, which I really enjoy doing!

Using Private Investigators in a Personal Injury Practice

Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:21:55 -0500

I’m 38. For many in my generation, when we hear the phrase “private investigator”, Tom Selleck playing Magnum, P.I. is what springs to mind. But in the real-world practice of law, there are certain times when a good private investigator can be invaluable, even if he isn't a Ferrari driving ex-Navy SEAL.

One example is locating difficult to find witnesses. A few years ago we had a red light – green light case in Baltimore City where our client had a permanent crush injury to her ankle. The case was vigorously contested on liability, and the only locatable witnesses agreed that the defendant had a green light. So I got my investigator working on locating the other witnesses who were listed on the police report. He found one of them- an 11 year-old boy who had seen the accident happen from a friend’s porch that was located a short distance from the light. He confirmed that my client had entered the intersection on a green light.

We tried that case. The jury found the boy more credible than the adult witnesses, who had been drinking that afternoon. The jury awarded our client over a million dollars in damages- on a case we never could have won if we hadn’t found that witness.

Private investigators just seem to be better at locating people than process servers. So in addition to locating witnesses, often I will use a private investigator to serve a summons on a defendant if they are hard to find. I think one reason PI’s are better at this lies in the compensation structure. Process servers only get paid when service is made, while PI’s get paid by the hour. So the process server has a financial disincentive to spend time working to locate a “hard serve” while the PI does not. Of course, another factor is that the PI likely has investigative training that the process server does not.

PI’s are also good for taking recorded statements from witnesses once they are located. This is important, because it is possible for the person who obtained the statement to become a witness in the case if there are any questions about the authenticity of the statement or the circumstances under which it was taken. That prevents counsel from becoming a witness in the case.

Practice tip: Oftentimes, insurance companies will get a recorded statement from a witness shortly after an accident occurs. In many cases, this will be months or even years before you know the witness even exists. So when I send an investigator to locate and get a statement from a witness, I send along a pre-printed permission form for the witness to sign allowing me to get a copy of any statement they have given previously. Once it is signed, under Md. Rule 2-402 (f), the defense must produce a copy of the statement.

Florida Court Allows Financial Bias Discovery of Plaintiff's Treating Physicians

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 09:25:36 -0500

Regular readers of this blog (Hi, Mom!) will probably remember that cross-examining defense medical experts on the issue of financial interest bias is a topic that I have discussed several times. That is because our lawyers believe that when an expert has a financial interest bias, that it is of vital importance to get that information before the jury, so they can fairly evaluate the wtiness' testimony.

In Maryland, the most useful authority on the issue is contained in two appellate opinions: Wrobleski v. DeLara, 353 Md. 509, 727 A.2d 930 (1999), and Falik v. Hornage, 413 Md. 163, 991 A.2d 1234 (2010). The second one is a Miller & Zois case. Actually, two cases combined for appeal. One was handled in the trial court by my colleague Rod Gaston, the other by me, and I was appellate counsel in both. So we feel that our law firm is out on the leading edge in this issue.

One topic that often comes up in personal injury litigation is the issue of personal injury lawyers referring clients to particular medical providers. Defense lawyers always want to delve into this, on the theory that there is some wink and nod quid pro quo between the lawyer and the doctor that the referral will result in favorable testimony. I don't know that this is neccessarily true. There are lots of good reasons referrals like this are made: many clients do not have health insurance to pay for treatment, Maryland PIP is only $2500 (and is often used up to replace lost wages), and many treatment providers will not accept patients who were involved in accidents.

Preparing Your Client for Cross-Examination

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 22:29:36 -0500

The most important part of a personal injury trial is the plaintiff’s testimony. If it doesn’t go well, it will be nearly impossible to get a favorable damages award. We believe in thoroughly preparing the plaintiff to testify, both on direct and cross-examination.

By the time the trial draws near, most experienced personal injury lawyers will have a pretty good idea of what’s out there as far as potential cross-examination material. This comes from a variety of sources: interrogatory answers, medical records, deposition testimony, prior medical history, etc.

It’s important to always take the client through the major areas of cross-examination. I do this by explaining what is likely to be asked, and walking the client through the source material while explaining why the particular fact is a topic of interest for cross. Lately, in our office we have been actually conducting a full on mock cross-examination of our clients before trial. The lawyer doing the practice cross is always somebody who is not involved in the case for extra realism. We have found this is pretty effective. The next step is going to be video recording the practice cross so that we can play it back for the client to give them the full picture of how their testimony will be perceived by the jury.

Are any other lawyers out there doing this? Let me know how it has worked out.