In this new, third edition of Theater Tips and Strategies for Jury Trials, David Ball updates his methods and approaches to jury persuasion. This practical step-by-step guide helps you navigate the changes that occur in jury trials instead of being blindsided by them. Based on both research and the experience of lawyers and trial consultants across the country, Theater Tips and Strategies for Jury Trials, Third Edition, presents techniques of the stage and screen you can use to win in the courtroom. Ball tells how to use theater concepts to persuade and motivate jurors. He tells attorneys how to look, talk, and act naturally, and to communicate the truth clearly and memorably, so they gain trust and credibility from judges and jurors. Ball provides practical guidance for voir dire, openings and closings, testimony, and focus groups. He describes what practitioners can learn from actors about their manner, voice projection, and behavior. He explains how to grab the jury from the beginningjust as a good movie opening captures the audience. He details how to prepare your {28}cast.

Two outstanding Texas trial lawyers—one of whom is now an equally respected district judge—have written On the Jury Trial, a “must have” reference for any trial lawyer aspiring to excellence or seeking to maintain it. Thomas M. Melsheimer and Judge Craig Smith have crafted a narrative-driven advice guide for trial lawyers to hone their craft. Chapter topics include voir dire, opening statement, preparing witnesses, cross examination, using exhibits, closing argument, jury research, and more, with excellent examples and “do’s and don’ts” provided throughout. Think of this book as the senior law partner’s memo to associates on how to really try a case. Looking for fly-on-the-wall insight into world-class trial preparation and strategy? Here it is. A behind-the-scenes tour of the inner workings of the judicial process? This book has you covered. Its combination of advice, illustration, and commentary is every bit as valuable as it is unique. Every litigator should have this book on the shelf, no matter the state in which they practice. The jury trial is a critical component of our democratic society, and its use in civil cases is unique to the United States. It is truly an example of our participatory democracy in action, and yet the jury trial is under attack from all sides, most notably from special interest groups who seek to have more cases decided by individual judges or by arbitration. These efforts have resulted in a decline of civil jury trials all over the country. A decline in the jury trial is a decline in justice. To preserve the jury trial, we must preserve the skills of trying a case effectively and efficiently. On the Jury Trial, in no small way, will add significantly to that effort.