Although Hollywood courtroom drama movies often glorify lawyers' closing arguments, in point of fact, the opening statement might be the one most significant event of a trial.
Lawyers within the hush money case involving former President Donald Trump and alleged payments to Pornstar Stormy Daniels presented theirs Opening speeches on April 22, 2024 in New York.
In this caseManhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg accused the previous president 34 crimes of falsifying business records before the 2016 presidential election to influence voters' knowledge of him. Trump pleaded not guilty.
Academic psychologists tell us that between 65% and 75% of jurors make up your mind a couple of case after the opening statement. What's much more incredible is that this 85% of those jurors maintaining the position they formed thereafter the opening speech Once all of the evidence is presented and the method is complete.
In most cases, it is just too late to win over the jury through closing arguments.
This phenomenon is not any surprise to experienced litigators. You're accustomed to two theories that outline how jurors – actually, people typically – process information: the concepts of Primacy and topicality
These ideas suggest that jurors remember best what they hear first and what they hear last. Therefore, it’s critical for attorneys on each side to start their opening arguments with a bang.
The psychology of the jury
I taught a course about it Litigation representation at Harvard Law School for 20 years. Part of my curriculum involves teaching aspiring attorneys learn how to give effective opening statements.
If the goal is to persuade the jury by the top of the attorney's opening statement, how does that work in practice?
Trial attorneys who’re deep in research know that jurors reply to a well thought out theory of the case, interrupted by a succinct topic.
A theory of the case is a brief statement of three to 5 sentences, much like an elevator pitch. The theme is a brief, concise summary of the speculation of the case that is straightforward for a juror to recollect. The topic is commonly the primary sentence out of the lawyer's mouth, followed by a more detailed description of the speculation.
In fact, the very first skill I teach in my course at Harvard is developing theories and themes. To effectively convey a theory in a case, many attorneys begin their opening statement with “This is about…” after which fill in the particular details.
For example, in a murder case the prosecution might begin as follows:
“Members of the jury, this case involves the death of an innocent young woman, witnesses from concerned citizens, all of whom identify the only person who has a motive to kill her, the defendant.”
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In stark contrast, the defense might begin with something that’s the exact opposite of the prosecution's opening statement:
“Members of the jury, this is a case about a jealous ex-lover who shot a woman in cold blood, fled the country, and left my client to fall.”
In each example, the jury is given enough information to border the evidence they’ll hear through the trial.
After each side complete their openings, data will show that greater than two-thirds of the jury can have reached a call that can stand for the remainder of the trial.
Why do jurors are inclined to behave this manner?
Research has also taught trial lawyers that in case you engage the jury in your theory of a case early within the trial, the jury will process all remaining evidence—no matter whether it’s potentially helpful to the prosecution or defense—through that prism this theory.
The importance of opening statements can’t be overemphasized. They set the tone and supply a framework for the jury to know the testimony they’ll hear in the approaching months.
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