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How to Prepare Effective &
Convincing Visuals for Trial
by Rick Kraemer
Every attorney would agree that early and thorough preparation is essential to
the success of a case. Many attorneys, however, fail to realize that proper
preparation is also critical when it comes to developing visual aids for trial.
Early visual aids planning will enhance your oral presentation and go a long
way in creating an effective and convincing presentation before a judge or
jury.
When is the best time to begin developing visuals? As soon as you know that your
case is headed for arbitration or trial. Set aside an appropriate amount of
time to discuss your case with a graphics consultant who can then help you
devise a graphics strategy that will best help convince a judge or juryof your
interpretation of the facts.
While attorneys often feel comfortable absorbing information by wading through
reams of written documents, members of the general public do not. More and
more, they are used to and expect to receive information visually. Television
news clips and instant access to graphically enhanced information over the
Internet means jurors have less patience and less of an attention span for
"plain-wrapped" presentations from attorneys. They are used to the rapid-fire
pace of attorney-centered television programs and Court TV. They want to hear a
case in easily-understood, visually-pleasing pictures. In other words, they
want to be entertained while being informed. Visuals can do just that.
 Visuals are sales tools. Although many attorneys construct
their own visuals, few have the graphics background to look at visuals from a
sales-oriented perspective. A visual can be pleasing to the eye, for example,
but does it get the message across? Does it help drive home your points? A
graph may have all the bells and whistles but it may also be confusing or
inconsistent. A graphics consultant can wrap the thousands of words you intend
to use to try your case into a simple, salable, visually-enhanced package.
When you wait until the last minute to prepare your graphics, you lose the
valuable opportunity to fine-tune the graphics, put together the best visuals
for your case and practice working with them. For example, to obtain the floor
plan of a building, you will need to contact the city’s planning office, the
building architect or owner. If your case involves an auto accident, ideally
you should hire a professional photographer to take pictures of the car so the
vehicle can be properly lighted and the finished photos for use in court
accurately arrowed and diagramed. All these efforts take time and would be
almost impossible to accomplish on short notice.
One of the best examples of an attorney understanding the importance of early
visual aid preparation is Michael Bidart during his recent $120 million win in
Goodrich v. Aetna. In what is considered the largest financial verdict against
an HMO, a jury found that Aetna delayed and later denied coverage to plaintiff
David Goodrich who had contracted a rare form of stomach cancer. A month before
trial, Bidart came to our office and we began working with him on a visual
graphics strategy. We helped him choreograph his opening argument. His visuals
became an integral part of his well-organized, dynamic 1 1/2 hour opening that
set the tone for the entire trial.
"Visual aids should be the road map for your case," says Bidart. "They force
lawyers to prepare in advance so you are not writing your opening the night
before trial. In the Goodrich case, we wanted to present the feeling of how
much red tape there was to get medical care. We literally created a map to show
how complicated it was. Visual aids also allow me to comfortably present the
case without constantly referring to my notes. The jury doesn’t realize it, but
the visuals are my notes. They allow a continuous free flow of information to
the jury."
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