Have you perfected your process of trial preparation into an art of war? Are you getting all you can out of the opportunities witnesses and opposing counsel let slip during trial? Do your juries leave the courtroom wanting to reach the verdict that you've clearly stated you want? Take your courtroom presentation skills to the next level of excellence with this strategic guide. Order today!

1. Voir Dire/Jury Selection Strategies
2. Opening Statements and Direct Examination
3. Cross-Examination and Redirect - Focus on Experts and Evidence
4. Effective Exhibits and Courtroom Technology
5. Summations and Jury Instructions
6. Roundtable Discussion

1. VOIR DIRE AND JURY SELECTION STRATEGIES
   9:00 - 10:00, Chester H. Lauck III
   1. Preparing for Jury Selection - Researching Your "Target Audience"
      (Venue, Juror Pool Demographics, Creating Your "Ideal Juror," Drafting Surveys/Questionnaires, etc.)
   2. Preparing the Pre-Trial Order
   3. Introducing Your Case During Jury Selection
   4. Bringing to the Surface and Overcoming Juror and Judicial Biases
   5. Reading the Vital Non-Verbal Signals Jurors are Sending
   6. Peremptory and For-Cause Challenge Tactics
2. OPENING STATEMENTS AND DIRECT EXAMINATION
   10:15 - 11:45, Chester H. Lauck III
   1. Maximizing the Impact of Opening Statements
      (Introducing Case Theme and Key Case Parties; Laying out the Sequence of Events; Introducing Supporting and Damaging Evidence; Preparing Judge and Jury to Focus on Specific Elements of Trial Presentation; Opening Techniques That Simply Don't Work; Cutting Out Unnecessary Clutter)
   2. Preparation Tips for Direct Examination
      (Establishing the Main Theme, Organizing the Order of Testimony, Preparing Witnesses, Formulating Effective Questions)
   3. Areas of Direct Examination
      (Specific Approaches to Impeachment, Fact Testimony, Expert Testimony, Causation, Liability, Damages, Foundation, etc.)
   4. Persuasive Witness Testimony - How to:
      1. Develop the Story and Make it Interesting
      2. Integrate a Theme
      3. Adjust to the Specific Audience
      4. Limit the Scope
      5. Handle and Introduce Exhibits
      6. Authenticate Documents
      7. Humanize Your Witness
      8. Anticipate and Neutralize Cross-Examination
   5. Is Interim Commentary Allowed? How to Use it Well
3. CROSS-EXAMINATION AND REDIRECT - FOCUS ON EXPERTS AND EVIDENCE
   12:45 - 2:00, J.G. "Gerry" Schulze
   1. Advance Uses of Basic Cross-Exam Tools: Bias, Opportunity to Observe, Inconsistency, etc.
   2. Tips for Cross-Examining Difficult Lay Witnesses
   3. Opposing Experts in the Courtroom - Setting Up the Motion to Strike
      1. Timing/Sequence
      2. Phrasing
      3. Detailed Facts
      4. Psychological Components
      5. Advanced Techniques for Getting an Expert Disqualified
   4. Making and Responding to Objections
   5. Relevancy Issues
   6. Addressing Hearsay
   7. Redirect Examination - Taking Advantage of the Often-Overlooked Resource
4. EFFECTIVE EXHIBITS AND COURTROOM TECHNOLOGY
   2:00 - 3:00, Meredith M. Wineland
   1. Overcoming Fear and Confronting Technology
   2. Preparing for the Digital Trial
      1. Digital Case Storage and Organization
      2. Authentication of Documents
      3. Document/Exhibit Organization
      4. Preparing the Courtroom and Conditioning the Jury
      5. Blending Technology Use Into Your Presentation for Seamless Delivery
   3. Choosing the Right Method and Form of Exhibit
      (Physical vs. Image; Actual vs. Demonstrative; Budget; Setting; Venue; Subject Matter; Order of Proof; Presenter's Style and Preferences; Comfort Level With Technology)
   4. Does Each of Your Exhibits Pass the 8-Point Test?
   5. What Can the Opposing Counsel do With the Evidence I Introduce?
   6. Video Depositions (Prior Testimony)
      1. Advantages and Pitfalls
      2. When to Use
      3. Rules of Completeness
      4. Objections
      5. Fairness
5. SUMMATIONS AND JURY INSTRUCTIONS
   3:15 - 4:00, Chester H. Lauck III
   1. What to Include
   2. Length and Style Tactics
   3. Use of Pace and Voice Inflection to Emphasize Key Elements
   4. Addressing the Weak Points of the Case
   5. The Verdict Sheet/Jury Instructions - Clearly Asking for What You Want
6. ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION
   4:00 - 4:30, Chester H. Lauck III, J.G. "Gerry" Schulze and Meredith M. Wineland
   1. Handling Surprises at Trial - What to do When Unfavorable Facts Surface
   2. Lessons Learned From Experience - Share Your Trial Tips and Techniques

CHESTER H. LAUCK III is a sole practitioner with Lauck Law Firm. He has a trial-oriented practice in the areas of railroad litigation, insurance defense, medical malpractice, business litigation, products liability, professional liability and trucking. Mr. Lauck has litigated cases in state and federal courts in 19 states and has successfully tried cases to verdict in Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio and Tennessee on behalf of both plaintiffs and defendants. He previously worked for Jones & Granger, a national law firm headquartered in Houston, Texas, that focuses on railroad litigation. Mr. Lauck is admitted to practice before the Arkansas Supreme Court, U.S. District Court of Arkansas (Eastern and Western districts), Supreme Court of Tennessee, U.S. District Court of Tennessee (Western District) and Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. He earned his B.A. degree from Westminster College and his J.D. degree from University of Arkansas.

J.G. "GERRY" SCHULZE is a partner with the Little Rock law firm of Baker Schulze & Murphy, PLLC, where he practices in the areas of appellate law, plaintiffs' personal injury litigation, and civil and commercial litigation. He is a member of the Arkansas Bar Association, the State Bar of Texas, the Arkansas Trial Lawyers Association and the American Association for Justice. Mr. Schulze also is a member of SCRIBES, which is an organization for legal writers. He was the institute chair for the Arkansas Bar Association Appellate Advocacy Institute in 1996 and 1997. Mr. Schulze earned his B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from Loyola University and his J.D. degree, with high honors, from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

MEREDITH M. WINELAND is in private practice in Benton, Arkansas, and practices in the area of family litigation, including divorce, guardianship, custody, adoptions and juvenile law. She has presented seminars on custody matters, guardians, property, legislation and ethics. Ms. Wineland is a graduate of Arkansas State University and earned her J.D. degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She is a member of the Arkansas and Saline County bar associations. Ms. Wineland is a former chair for the State Judicial Ethics Committee and president and former secretary to the Benton Civil Service Commission.

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