Personal Injury Juries: Overcoming Politics and Conspiracy Theories
Contending With Cognitive Consistency, Understanding the Effect of the Pandemic, Framing Arguments for Intuitive Processing

Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
Intermediate
- work Practice Area
Personal Injury and Med Mal
- event Date
Monday, October 28, 2024
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
-
This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
This CLE webinar will discuss the influence of political leanings and conspiracy theories on juries and how to address them. The panel will review traditional views on the relationship between politics and responsibility, the psychological make-up of a conspiracy theorist, why it has become significant for juries, and how to potentially identify conspiracy theorists, as well as offer strategies for converting these jurors despite unshakeable convictions.
Faculty

Dr. Ken Broda-Bahm has provided research and strategic advice on several hundred cases across the country for the past 21 years, applying a doctorate in communication emphasizing the areas of legal persuasion and rhetoric. As a tenured Associate Professor of Communication Studies, he has taught courses including legal communication, argumentation, persuasion, and research methods. He has trained and consulted in 19 countries around the world and is Past President of the American Society of Trial Consultants.

Mr. Gray is a key member of the firm’s Complex Litigation, Pharmaceutical Products, and Toxic Torts & Products Liability practice groups where he represents multiple Global 500 chemical and drug corporations. Bringing a real-world sense to the legal issues and problems faced by these companies in a wide range of matters, Mr. Gray has an instinctive ability to unravel the complexities of mass tort litigation into simple, straightforward themes that effectively convey our clients’ stories to judges and juries. He is experienced with all facets of the litigation process. This experience includes coordinating company-wide electronic discovery document collection and production; evidentiary and dispositive motions practice; the preparation for and defense of depositions of corporate representatives, corporate fact witnesses, and expert witnesses; defending mediation; and trial. Mr. Gray has specialized in developing the company’s science-based defense strategy and has worked extensively with the expert witnesses on report preparation, deposition testimony, and trial testimony.

Ms. Williams is a partner at Goodell DeVries and a member of the firm's Appellate Practice Group. She represents clients across the firm's many practice groups in pre-trial and appellate matters. Ms. Williams brings 16 years of appellate experience at the Maryland Office of the Attorney General, where she served as Principal Counsel for Criminal Policy and, before that, Division Chief of the Criminal Appeals Division. She is one of the few private attorneys selected among many appellate judges in the inaugural class of Maryland's Cole-Davidson Appellate Inn of Court. In 2023, Ms. Williams was appointed by Governor Wes Moore to the Appellate Courts Judicial Nominating Commission.
Description
Conventual wisdom has been that political leaning plays a role in how a juror might assign responsibility in a civil case. Conservative, Republican jurors could be relied on to emphasize personal responsibility and favor the defense, and liberal, Democratic jurors could be generally counted on to emphasize social responsibility and favor plaintiffs.
A growing subset of jurors on both ends of the political spectrum now believe, generally, that powerful interests are secretly controlling important events and that common sources of information, scientific evidence, experts, and institutions cannot be trusted. These jurors can be almost impossible to persuade with evidence and logic. However, according to researcher Nick Polavin, these conspiracy theory jurors pose significant consequences for the defense because extreme right-wing conspiracy theory jurors are intensely pro-plaintiff.
When necessary, counsel can present the case in a way that appeals to how these jurors process information. Another option is to wrap the arguments around the jurors' extreme beliefs by framing the arguments using some of those beliefs and only asking them to accept a limited amount of new information.
Listen as this panel offers guidance about techniques to overcome long-held, unshakable beliefs in general and then how to approach juries where that unshakable belief may seem impervious to facts or logic.
Outline
- Traditional views on the relationship between politics and responsibility
- The psychological make-up of a conspiracy theorist
- Impact of conspiracy theorists on juries
- How to potentially identify conspiracy theorists
- Strategies for converting these jurors despite unshakeable convictions
Benefits
The panel will review these another key issues:
- What is cognitive consistency and why is it so powerful?
- What is the effect of the pandemic on the rise of conspiracy theories?
- How does one wrap an argument around an audience's existing beliefs?
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