Missouri Lawyers Media Missouri legal news and public notices

Most lawyers never have to encounter the perjury dilemma up close and personal. All lawyers hope they won’t.

Tagged with: perjury

These are not legal “rights” formally set forth in some statute or case. Rather, they are based simply on fairness and common courtesy.

In few areas of the law are ethical issues so challenging and yet so inextricably linked with day-to-day practice as in witness preparation.

No matter how much time is spent in preparation, there is often still a lot a witness’s lawyer can do to help while the witness is being questioned.

Whatever the tone of the questioner or the questions, the witness’s response should always be the same: coolly, unflappably, relentlessly — even infuriatingly — polite and positive.

If the old saying is true — that he who writes the rules wins the game — then the No. 1 rule for any witness is to take your time.

Just as the political campaign mantra “It’s the economy, Stupid!” was designed as a reminder of what was most important, perhaps law schools should add: “It’s the client, Stupid!” to the inspirational Latin phrases that adorn their ivy halls.

To prepare a witness, lawyers must help the witness — and themselves — define, understand and bridge each gap between a witness's real-world experiences and the strange, unnatural world of being a witness.

Tagged with: Witness