The Litigation Psychology Podcast

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. and Steve Wood, Ph. D. are joined by NYC trial attorney Tony Battista of Condon & Forsyth LLP in the second part of their discussion about a high profile trial they recently worked on together. The group talks about their approach for opening statements, how many drafts of the opening they had, how many versions they tested with mock jurors, and how they dealt with al...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. and Steve Wood, Ph. D. are joined by NYC trial attorney Tony Battista of Condon & Forsyth LLP in the first of a two-part discussion on trial techniques and details on a large aviation fatality case that they recently worked on together. Tony shares his background, talks about how he approaches highly complicated cases, and how he keeps a positive perspective when expe...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. shares a list of dirty little tricks used by opposing counsel at deposition that can cause issues for witnesses who have not been trained and prepared for these devious tricks.  1. Repetition of questions (i.e., negative reinforcement)  2. Getting the witness on the Yes Train (lull the witness into an agreement pattern)   3. Using silence after a witness's answer to get t...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. is joined by JFK assassination expert, journalist, and author Jefferson Morley to discuss the latest updates on the still unreleased government documents associated with the JFK assassination. Jefferson provides an overview of where things stand currently with release of JFK assassination documents, particularly with regards to the active litigation around these records'...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. is joined by Associate Attorney Jeffrey Oates, Attorney Kristin Petty, and Attorney Jason Preciphs from the law firm of Roberts, Carroll, Feldstein, and Peirce. Bill's guests describe the diverse types of cases their firm works on, how their firm attracts and retains associates, and how they provide growth opportunities for their attorneys while also growing the firm. The...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. talks about unique voir dire questions, particularly around damages, to help attorneys improve their jury selection process and to set the stage for openings. Bill gives examples of topics to ask about during voir dire that help to indoctrinate jurors. Some of the topics for questions Bill discusses: social inflation, lawsuit abuse, justice for the defense, commenting on...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. talks about something all attorneys, but particularly early career attorneys, need to keep in mind when preparing witnesses for deposition. Sometimes witnesses come into deposition preparation with some trauma which could be related to the litigation, or from other sources, that may be triggered or further exacerbated by the litigation. It's important for the attorney to...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. talks about the critical importance of preparation for litigation, and particularly early preparation. Bill discusses the risks for the defense by not being prepared and the costs for not being prepared. Bill talks about steps to take before litigation even strikes: 1. Education: Identify people who will be involved in litigation and/or likely to get deposed in a future l...

Jonathan Wohlwend, Associate Attorney at Bradley, joins Steve Wood, Ph. D. to talk about Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) and the legal implications around NIL. Jonathan provides background on what NIL is and is not, particularly within the context of college athletics, and describes how the process for NIL works for recruiting players. Jonathan defines what a collective is, the changes that have happe...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. talks about the biggest mistake witnesses make during testimony: guessing. Bill describes why this happens, even in light of clear direction to not guess, and how to address it. Bill talks about the attention/behavior gap which is driven by the brain's native neurocognitive wiring and explains the two categories of reasons why witnesses guess: internal and external reason...

Steve Wood, Ph. D. talks about seeing more and more examples of witnesses who are fighting with opposing counsel in their deposition or at trial, motivated by a desire to get their story across. Steve covers several reasons why pivoting like this is a bad idea including: arguing with a professional arguer is foolish; jurors view witnesses who pivot or argue with opposing counsel as less credible;...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. talks about how to select experts for trial testimony. One option is to pick national experts and another approach is to choose an expert who is more local to the venue. Bill walks through some important considerations when selecting an expert witness:  - How much time does the expert spend testifying professionally? - How much of their income comes from testifying as an...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. and Ava Hernandez join host Steve Wood, Ph. D. for another edition of From the Trenches where they discuss recent observations and updates from jury research projects, witness trainings, and cases that the CSI team have been working on. First, they talk about how too many attorneys wait until close to trial to contact the CSI team for help with training witnesses for tria...

Paul Motz, Shareholder and Trial Attorney, at Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney joins Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. to dispel several myths around litigation and talk about what's fact and what's fiction. Paul and Bill discuss whether jurors hate corporations, whether the person most knowledgeable should always serve as the corporate representative, whether someone who has been deposed many times...

Steve Wood, Ph. D. joins host Ava Hernandez to discuss his background and how he got into the litigation consulting business. Steve shares details on his education and his interest in how people make decisions which he applies to his role as a litigation consultant. Ava and Steve also talk about their fascination with how people behave and in particular how people's perspectives are influenced by...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. talks about how to manage stress during trial. Bill shares the three areas to focus on: physical health, emotional health, and mental health.  Physical health keys:  1. Protect your sleep - really important to get plenty of restful sleep.  2. Exercise - get your body moving, even if its just for a few minutes by taking a walk or a short run.  3. Eat right - you have to ea...

Nationally recognized and renowned memory expert Dr. Elizabeth Loftus joins Steve Wood, Ph. D. for the second part of their discussion about memory, where they talk about repressed memories. Dr. Loftus shares her experience working on cases where repressed memories were at the core of the case and the research she has done on repressed memories and false memories. Steve and Elizabeth discuss the w...

Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. answers another round of podcast listener mail: - What is the best timing for witness training? - What is the best routine for the witness the morning of the deposition?  - How do you deal with catastrophic injury and death cases every week? - How long should focus groups be? - Any updates on nuclear verdicts and how to prevent them? Watch the video of this episode: https...

Nationally recognized and renowned memory expert Dr. Elizabeth Loftus joins Steve Wood, Ph. D. for the first part of a two-part episode about memory. Dr. Loftus is a Distinguished Professor at University of California-Irvine and has consulted on the issue of memory for hundreds of civil and criminal cases throughout her career. Dr. Loftus shares her background on how she got into the study of memo...

John E. Hall, Jr., Partner with Hall, Booth, Smith, P.C. joins Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. to talk about the trial process. Bill and John discuss preparation for trial, managing stress leading up to trial, as well as, managing stresses during trial. John shares the strategic approach his team employs to prepare for trial and how he works with his trial team. John and Bill talk about how to stay focu...

Legal Sector Analyst and Forecaster Jordan Furlong joins host Ava Hernandez to discuss a range of topics around the future of legal including shifts in market expectations, the development of early career lawyers, and changes in the business of law. Jordan and Ava talk about how law firms must reconsider and reimagine their approach to their purpose. Jordan highlights  how the development program...

As a follow-up to Part 1 (Episode #220) of what not to do in opening statements, Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. talks about what to do in your opening statements. Bill discusses a few key principles for delivering opening statements: the speed of delivery, eye contact, repetition, pausing/using silence, movement, volume, and telling the jurors what you want. Bill talks about primacy and recency effects...

Michael “Mick” Williams, Ph. D., Founding Member of The Science of P/CVE & Shawn C. Marsh, Ph. D., Director of Judicial Studies and Associate Professor of Communication Studies / Social Psychology at the University of Nevada, Reno join Steve Wood, Ph. D. to discuss the concept of Terror Management Theory and its implications on civil litigation. Mick and Shawn define what Terror Management The...

In the first of a two-part episode, Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. talks about opening statements and what not to do in your opening statement. First, Bill explains the primary reasons why opening statements fail:  1) Attorneys don't get formal training on how to construct an opening statement; 2) Attorneys don't have an understanding of how the juror brain processes information; 3) The games our minds...

Attorney Chris Turney of Turney LG joins Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph. D. to discuss inflated settlements and verdicts. Chris describes what he believes are the factors that are influencing and effecting outsized settlements and verdicts and walks through a 4 quadrant concept to help explain what is happening. Chris defines what he refers to as direct actions, indirect actions, intentional actions, and u...