OPENING STATEMENT of the attorneys for Justin Wusso and Alex ! Search this site. Truthfully, it doesn't matter whether you practice criminal law, civil law, family law, or whether you are preparing for a mock trial Opening Statement. All events in the real world, after all, occur in chronological order.Moreover, we are all used to thinking of life in chronological terms.It is for this very reason, in fact, that opening statements have become part of the trial: to allow lawyers to take individual witness accounts and meld them into a single chronological narrative.Consider the following: Now that you have given the fact-finder your full story, you may want to briefly introduce the legal issues of the case.A statement of legal issues will put the significance of the facts into clear perspective.If you represent the plaintiff/prosecution, mention your burden briefly and state that you will prove that the defendant is liable/guilty: Your opening statement should almost always conclude with a request for, or explanation of, the verdict that you will seek at the end of the trial.This request should be made in general terms: “At the end of the case we will ask you to return a verdict that the defendant was nt guilty of negligence.”, West Michigan - Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo. If you seem overly concerned or worried about a defense, it will suggest that there are indeed problems with your case. to admissible evidence.The best method, then, is to use only those facts for which you have a reasonable theory of admissibility. Shopping. Your goal in presenting an opening statement should be to use it as an opportunity to advance your theory of the case.This is not as easy nor as obvious as it may sound. An opening statement is basically an introduction to the nature and facts of a case. Discuss with the class what they know about trials and how they work. How you write your opening statement depends on which side of the case you are writing it for. It forecasts to the jury the evidence they will see and hear during the trial. Grand Rapids Campus | 111 Commerce Avenue SW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503 | (616) 301-6800 The opening statement is the opportunity for the attorney to tell the jury what the cause of action is about, what evidence the jury will hear, and the attorney’s client’s side of the story. 4 0 obj The defendant stands here falsely accused of _____, a very serious crime. 1 0 obj In every mock trial packet there are inconsistencies in the case or facts that help the defense. Watching an Opening Statement example is a great way to improve your own trial advocacy skills. Chronology can also interfere with the logical exposition of your theory or theme.For instance, in the fire truck case the plaintiff’s theme is that the defendant was too rushed to be careful.The conclusion is supported by the fact that the defendant woke up late that morning as well as the fact that he called his office regarding his meeting immediately after the collision.When inserted into the story chronologically, however, these facts stand a good chance of being lost to the fact-finder since they are separated by nearly an hour worth of events.Putting these facts together would maximize their impact. #3 – Laying the foundation so they’ll understand the rest of the case. on the victim’s neck that didn’t heal for over a week. Imagine that plaintiff’s counsel in the fire truck case opted for the witness-by-witness approach in her opening statement: The drawback of this method should be readily apparent; it quickly becomes boring and hard to follow. Below are the links to the mock trial resources I wrote for the students that I have coached for 25 years. o Students will learn and be able to apply a variety of questioning techniques. Recall that the very purpose of the opening statement, indeed its underlying justification, is to overcome the disjointed fashion in which the witnesses will produce evidence at trial.A witness-by-witness rendition of the facts is unlikely to produce a coherent story when the witnesses take the stand and testify for themselves.This method of organization becomes no more helpful simply because a lawyer has substituted a summary of the testimony for the actual direct and cross examinations. It is not sufficient to list the facts.A story is most persuasive when it explains why events occurred as they did, since a compelling reason for an action will tend to rule out alternatives.For example, you may state that the defendant in a collision case was driving slowly and carefully just before the accident.Even so, your explanation will be more persuasive if it is supported by the fact that the defendant was returning from an antique auction, carrying an expensive and fragile chandelier in the back seat of her car.The defendant’s reason for driving slowly not only supports her version of events, but makes less likely a claim by the plaintiff that she careened around a corner at high speed. In every opening statement you must decide which facts to include and which to leave out.While you will obviously want to emphasize the facts that you find helpful, there is also considerable risk to telling an incomplete or illogical story. Lesson 4: Writing a Mock Trial: An Instructional Framework Objectives: o Students will demonstrate an understanding of being in a courtroom. • Time: Allow approximately 1 1/2 hours to complete the trial, including the jury deliberation • Room set up: Set up like a court room; http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0769420.html Materials needed: Table tents or name tags with name of each role; a set of car keys; a verdict form The legal function of an opening statement is to assist the trier of fact in understanding the evidence to be presented at trial.While we hope the evidence will be self-explanatory, even in the best-organized trials evidence is often developed in a disjointed manner. Civil cases are likely to involve written and oral communications far more than they do physical occurrences.In many ways these non-physical events may be more difficult to describe during an opening statement since there is little or no activity to depict.Nonetheless, when a case turns on the interpretation of a document or the meaning of a series of telephone calls, counsel must search for a way to bring the transaction to life. OPENING STATEMENTS 2007 Street Law Mock Trial WHY is the opening statement so important? Introduction The opening statement is one of the most important components of any trial. INTRODUCTION: Good morning ladies and gentlemen of the jury, my name is so-and-so, and I together with my colleagues, represent the defendant Mr. so-and-so. Motion in Limine. SUGGESTIONS FOR HOW TO PREPARE FOR THE MOCK TRIAL 1. . Most judges will allow you to move freely about the courtroom during opening statements.Even so, you might encounter a judge who prefers that you argue your case from the podium or behind counsel table.If you are unsure about which policy the judge follows, ask her before the trial begins. In addition to limiting your opening to only the facts that you believe will be admissible at trial, there are other specific rules that set forth the manner in which you may present your opening statement.Once you understand these rules, you can begin to plan exactly what you will say.Before we address these rules, however, we will briefly summarize the techniques you should follow when delivering your opening statement. Looking at a mock trial opening statement example can help you know how to start off, and maybe end but everything that goes in the middle is up to you. Your most important task when giving an opening statement is to tell the fact-finder your theory and theme of the case.Although you need not use these exact words, you should start each trial by saying, in effect, “This is a case about…”You can then tell the fact-finder, in a single phrase or sentence, precisely why your client should win.See Chapter 2 (“Case Preparation”) for a detailed explanation of theme and theory. They provide an opportunity for students to develop advocacy and inquiry skills, explore career modelling, work cooperatively, develop critical thinking, build conflict resolution skills and develop relationships with justice sector professionals. First, if you have had weeks or even months to prepare for your mock trial, you should memorize your opening statement.When you have had less time, we recommend that you write out your opening statement and then divide it into sections.At trial, you can use an outline that lists the sections or headings.By triggering your memory section by section, you can avoid reading your opening statement.Reading is your enemy during openings since it introduces you to the fact-finder as stilted, labored, or unprepared.It also prevents you from making eye contact, picking up on the fact-finder’s reactions, moving about the courtroom and quickly responding to objections and rulings by the court.If you represent the defense, reading your opening further prevents you from replying to challenges, weaknesses, and omissions in the plaintiff’s opening statement. �g�Dt0���>W�Pԝ�h�Le2Q���z� �B�\����+���V�q���J9�ua���. In every mock trial packet there are inconsistencies in the case or facts that help the defense. Although it is improper to argue the credibility of witnesses in your opening statement, you may, and should, provide the trier of fact with facts that bolster your own witnesses and detract from the opposition’s.Bias, motive, prejudice, and interest in the outcome of the case are always relevant to a witness’s believability.Explain the facts that demonstrate your own witnesses’ lack of bias; include as well the facts that demonstrate the motive or interest of the opposition.For example: As should be apparent from the example above, the persuasiveness of an opening statement, indeed the persuasiveness of virtually any aspect of a trial, is often established through the use of details.Broad assertions can stake out territory and raise issues, but the truth will be determined by the details.An essential element of an opening statement, then, is the judicious use of details in support of the accuracy, dependability, or believability of your facts. Wusso. Recalling the principle of primacy, which posits that what is heard first will be best remembered, you should begin your opening statement by getting right to the point: state your theme; explain the most important point of your theory; lay the groundwork for a crucial direct or cross examination; foreshadow your closing argument. endobj case that helps get a conviction. The prosecution wants you to believe that this is a case about greed and anger. A successful theory will be built around a persuasive story.Ideally, such a story will be told about people who have reasons for the way they act; it will explain all of the known or undeniable facts; it will be told by credible witnesses; it will be supported by details; and it will accord with common sense.Thus, your opening statement should, at some point and in some manner, address all of these statements: Nonetheless, using a theme in your opening statement presents some difficulty.Unlike a trial theory, a theme is intended to reflect upon or interpret the evidence rather than simply to describe or outline it.Overuse or constant repetition of your theme may bring you perilously close to argument.Most judges, however, will allow the statement of a theme at both the beginning and end of an opening statement, especially when it is phrased in terms of fact as opposed to opinion or characterization. Emotionally based themes often serve as anchors, creating impressions for the jury that linger until the time the verdict is decided. Common sense is used both to judge and predict outcomes.An opening statement cannot be successful if its story does not resonate with everyday experience. Mansion. <>/ProcSet[/PDF/Text/ImageB/ImageC/ImageI] >>/MediaBox[ 0 0 612 792] /Contents 4 0 R/Group<>/Tabs/S>> If you represent a specific person, now is the time to introduce him to the fact-finder as well.This is your chance to humanize your client, to give the fact-finder a chance to come to like him.Don’t point to him and announce that he is a great guy.Stand next to him, place your hand on his shoulder and introduce him like you would your own grandfather.Explain his many fine qualities.Remember that likable people are more apt to be perceived as credible.Although there is no formula for how much information you give during your introduction, it is generally a good idea to share your client’s age, marital status, educational background, occupation, and anything else relevant to your case. Thus, introducing a theme in opening is particularly effective as a persuasive matter since it can focus the fact-finder’s attention on a cognitive image that you will return to throughout the trial. Plaintiff's Opening Statement Motor Tort: Part 1 and Part 2 (or read the entire first day of the trial to see it in full context) Defense opening (State Farm) Part 1 and Part 2. To reduce this confusion, the courts developed the concept of the opening statement.The opening statement gives the parties the opportunity to present an overview of the case at the beginning of the trial so as to better equip the fact-finder to make sense of the evidence as it is presented.This chance to give an overview of the expected testimony, however, is not an invitation to argue about it. Contrast is the juxtaposition of contradictory facts, most often used in an opening statement to demonstrate the implausibility of some aspect of the opposing case.The defendant in the fire engine case might use contrast this way: Without resort to argument, the simple contrast between the medical bills and the camping trip casts doubt on the plaintiff’s allegation of permanent injury. After Philip left, or maybe even before Philip entered that house, Mr. Johnson died in his sleep, of natural causes. Given at the beginning of a trial, an opening statement is an opportunity for lawyers on both sides to give the jury a brief overview of the case, and outline the key evidence that you will present. stream Mock trial opening statements sometimes tell a story without giving an idea of who the characters are, or explaining their emotions and motivations. #2 – Building rapport and getting on their “good side”. It is always difficult to decide how much attention to give to the opposition’s case.Plaintiff’s counsel must determine whether to anticipate and respond to the expected defenses.Defendant’s counsel has to consider whether and how to react to the plaintiff’s opening. Learn the facts of your case. Lansing Campus | 300 S. Capitol Avenue, Lansing MI 48901 | (517) 371-5140 State of Georgia ... Everyone is trying their hand at writing an opening or closing statement. Activity Steps 1. In addition, the use of rhetorical questions is inherently argumentative.For example, a suggestion of disbelief as in, “What could he possibly have been thinking of?” or a suggestion of incontrovertible certainty, “What other answer could there be?”Questions like these strongly signal argument when used in an opening statement. An independent, private, non-profit educational institution affiliated with Western Michigan University. Mock Trial University: Opening Statement | How to Deliver an Opening Statement - YouTube. THE THEME: Handout 6A: Trial Preparation Note: Refer to Mock Trial Lesson 2, Handout 2A: Steps in a Trial to help you prepare for the trial. Utilizing this example based on an actual fire, students will learn courtroom procedure, laws regarding arson and its consequences, as well as fire safety information. Recall that a trial theory is the adaptation of a factual story to the legal issues of the case.Your theory must contain a simple, logical, provable account of facts which, when viewed in light of the controlling law, will lead to the conclusion that your client should win.In short, you will want to use the opening statement to explain to the trier of fact why the verdict should be in your favor. Write the closing argument. It is helpful to understand a bit about the purpose of an opening. To.learn the facts in your witness statement 2. It is your first opportunity to present the case to the jury, and to shape the jury’s perspective of the entire trial. Mock Trial Explanatory Guide . Lesson 4 ! Relying on a theme and hearing a story that incorporates the theme helps make the information enjoyable and easier to comprehend. But, ladies and gentlemen, he didn’t kill him. Check your Mock Trial rules. An opening statement provides the lawyer with an opportunity to address the jury in a trial and shapes the impression of the case and the jury. %���� Since it is virtually impossible for counsel to avoid some discussion of the law during any but the simplest opening statement, we recommend that you do so quickly and only to the extent necessary.For instance, at some point in the fire truck opening the plaintiff’s attorney will have to raise the legal concept of “due care,” if only to explain exactly how the defendant was negligent. The message here is that you should use nouns and verbs in your opening statement and limit your use of modifiers, which are frequently judgments rather than descriptions (and as such are argumentative).Words like heinous, brutal, and awful may convey the lawyer’s opinion about the nature of the crime, but they do not depict a vision of the event itself. Now consider a paragraph with virtually no modifiers at all: The second paragraph is more vivid because it describes the deeds as they occurred whereas the first paragraph actually short-circuits the action by substituting value-laden modifiers for an account of the events themselves. Philip Moore robbed his lawyer, Mack Johnson. Consider, for example, the different mental images evoked by the terms “billiard parlor: and “pool hall.”For most people, a billiard parlor is thought of as a formal, reserved, well-lit and fairly respectable establishment.A pool hall, however, is more likely to be pictured as smoky, dark, perhaps slightly threatening, and probably a little seedy.Along with the contrasting images, the fact-finder will make different inferences about events occurring in these two places.In general, things seem to happen differently in pool halls than they do in billiard parlors.Visibility is better in a billiard parlor, whereas things happen more furtively in a pool hall.A stranger might be questioned in a billiard parlor, but a confrontation is more likely in a pool hall.In other words, the initial mental image dictates, or at least suggests, a variety of assumptions about the nature, context, and likelihood of events. The witnesses and the exhibits will do that. If you represent the prosecution in a criminal case, it is a good idea to introduce the victim of the crime after the traditional introduction.You might continue as follows: Introducing the victim at the outset of your case humanizes her so that the judge and jury will remember. Themes keep the jury’s attention and help them organize information. The first one … An opening statement can be made more attractive when it tells a story that people. After Opening Statements, you will then hear the state’s WITNESSES and after that, either or both defendants may call any witnesses they choose. Opening statements. In the fire truck case, the plaintiff might want to open something like this: The opening on the preceding page is direct and to the point.It states plaintiff’s theory and theme right at the outset and launches immediately into the facts that support her case.The three central points that the plaintiff will make are all mentioned: (1) The fire truck was clearly visible, (2) all of the other traffic stopped, and (3) the defendant was preoccupied and caused the accident. 2 0 obj get a conviction. <> The three general purposes of opening statements are to grab the fact-finder’s attention, to assist the fact-finder in understanding the anticipated events of the trial, and to advocate for your client’s position. Finally, point out significant omissions in your opposing counsel’s opening statement.As all trial lawyers learn, the absence of evidence can be as telling as the evidence itself.Defense counsel should therefore be ready to respond not only to what was said in plaintiff’s opening but also to what was not said.While it would be argumentative to accuse opposing counsel of concealing information, it is perfectly proper to point out evidentiary gaps in the plaintiff’s opening statement by stating, for example, “What Plaintiff’s counsel didn’t tell you is that…”. Likewise, although an excellent persuasive device when used elsewhere in a trial, repetition an lead an opening statement into the forbidden territory of argument.Even the most innocent of facts can become provocative when repeated as many as three times, each with greater emphasis. [Point to them and mention them by name to personalize them]. Get a clear understanding of who, what, where, when, why, and how. One of the previous themes for the plaintiff in the fire truck case is tat the defendant was “too busy to be careful.”This theme can be used at the beginning of the opening as a reference point for the information about the defendant’s course of conduct on the morning of the accident: Although there is a sense in which “too busy to be careful” is a conclusion, it is used here solely as an introduction to the facts that follow.Busyness and carefulness are ordinary incidents of life that are easily recognized without questionable inferences/Therefore, the theme “too busy to be careful” can almost certainly be invoked at the outset of the plaintiff’s opening statement. Effective Opening Statements I. This guide is designed to assist teachers, attorneys and students in their preparation for Mock Trial Tournaments. Mock Trial University: Opening Statement | How to Deliver an Opening Statement. x��Z[o��~�����\�yp�qO��*#���X˔A�q�_��$Z��A�X��23;��̷�0��OR�B�Wo�H�R�QF���(("1��&k���on&�wӳx�$z�+���k[�jzMė��L�i2��y-�i���%����i:�a=]O���/o�\�(�N�8�0�p{��M�c���W���;�r5-'�V��[��;1o�j;�\A����O�"!e&���yP�I(��P��P��,�Ga�2���gg��P~H����ү2|O#i.F��g�dz3���!��L�vE��a�t��p!q�7=�CIb���D/�{��ɟ��n�Rv�k&z ^���>�$�2+y�N+JOm� �n.g�#/y9-�3���Gm�s�-Jd��!��d��HJ��r9Ma�?��(�3���GG�[׀#��@{�3N?X �]-~�ղ}�����М�q����Ne8Q�1 In this excerpt, there are two points that I’m trying to establish: 1) that the police did not have probable cause to enter Janet Smith’s apartment, and 2) that Smith’s consent was not voluntary. The rules of evidence used in your mock trial govern what evidence is admitted at trial.Since the admission of a piece of evidence is left to the discretion of the presiding judge, you may not know exactly what facts will come out at trial when you are preparing your opening statement.To complicate matters, opening statements are. Think of your opening as a promise to the fact-finder.By making a definitive statement about the future evidence, you have committed yourself to producing that evidence.If you do not deliver, at best you may seem to have overstated your case and at worst you may seem to have deliberately misled the fact-finder.Even if the trier of fact does not realize that there has been a gap between your opening and your proof, you can be certain that opposing counsel will point it out during final argument. An opening statement is an opportunity to outline the case for the jury, and to let the jury know what to expect. Every trial can be understood as a series of sub-events which fit together to comprise the entire story.The discussion of these sub-events is always open to arrangement by counsel.The sub-events themselves, however, have their own internal logic, which generally can be understood only when explained chronologically. Lawyers should engage their audience during trial, and effective themes combined with engaging stories can fight juror … By watching examples like this, you can begin to incorporate these tips and tricks into your own opening statement. An Introduction: Attorney identifies themselves (or not) Some attorneys begin with something like:“Your Honor, members of the jury, my name is (full name), representing the prosecution/defendant in this case.”. To illustrate to the application of our test, consider the following portions of opening statements that are based on a personal injury case: The first examplepasses our test since the bartender will testify to the facts contained un the first three sentences and the police will verify the remainder of the information.The second example is more problematic.To begin, the drunkenness of the plaintiff is an inference lased on the lawyer’s conclusion “no person could drink four shots of Everclear” without feeling it.Calling the plaintiff “an alcoholic or a liar” is pure argument, since it characterizes the plaintiff’s behavior.Thus, the second example fails our test and is therefore improper.
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