Dealing with difficult judges is part of being a lawyer. Your clients are looking to you to obtain a good result. That means not only knowing the law and the facts and being a good advocate, it also requires you to navigate through the legal system. Dealing effectively with the judge to whom you are […]
REVIEW THE EXPERT’S WEBSITE Another important point on cross-examination of the plaintiff's expert witness is to review the expert's website for the information you can use in cross-examination. In our case, Oscar Torres v. Zhila Rastegamehr, Dr. Lerman first testified that Degenerative Disc disease occurs at the age of 45 or 46, but with a […]
Consider this scenario. You own a home in a new development, with well-kept homes and tidy lawns. You chose this neighborhood because there was no crime, it had good schools and pleasant neighbors. You and your spouse work hard, and do all you can for your family, community and your neighbors. Life is good. Then […]
In jury selection, I often discuss minimum expectations with the prospective jurors. I ask them if they know what a witness who takes the stand at trial needs to do before they begin to speak. The jury will chime in they need to take an oath. In conversation, I ask them if they know what […]
Jury selection is often treated as a perfunctory obligation by both plaintiffs and defendants, a boring and tedious task to get through before you have the opportunity to present your case. Jury selection has often been called the most important part of the case, so why is it that most lawyers trying cases want to […]
The case of Bermejo v. New York City Health & Hosps. Corp., 2015 NY Slip Op 08374 (N.Y. App. Div. Nov. 18, 2015) generated a lot of press from the onset. The case was heard in April of 2013 before Judge Hart in Queens County and resulted in a mistrial. Prior to the trial on the […]
How do you cross-examine the plaintiff's expert orthopedic surgeon when you discover the plaintiff has failed to reveal a prior accident and prior lawsuit, involving the same injuries as in your case to her treating physician? Dr. David Neuman charged plaintiff's counsel $12,000 to testify on a Bronx Case, Ina Allick-Diallo, Maria Davis and Rahim Davis […]
Anyone who has defended a recent Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) case will be familiar with the plaintiff's attempt to use Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) to prove the lifelong effects of a brain injury. DTI is a relatively new technology that is popular for imaging the white matter of the brain. The diffusion tensor was originally […]