OTLA Trial Lawyer Fall 2020

18 Trial Lawyer • Fall 2020 related to courthouse security. You want to move through security as smoothly as possible. Determine what things you can safely leave in the courtroom before trial. Try to reduce hassle associated with lug- ging equipment, evidence and other items into the courtroom. Familiarize yourself with area People do not like hearing the names of their streets, rivers and other land- marks mispronounced. Make sure you get that stuff right. Here in Pendleton, we live in “Yoo-matilla” County. McKay Reservoir is pronounced “Muck-Eye” not “Mc-Kay.” Remember how you feel when someone says “Or-egg-on.” It helps to know if there are notori- ously dangerous stretches of road or in- tersections near the court where your case will be tried. Ask the jury pool in a mo- tor vehicle case about their experiences in these places. Cabbage Hill is a danger- ous stretch of I-84 near Pendleton. In trucking cases, this subject gets people talking during jury selection. For ex- ample, I have asked, “Let me have a show of hands. How many of you have had a scary experience with a truck on Cabbage Hill? Tell me about that.” Get a grip on local current events Read several editions of the local newspaper before trial. Find out if big things are happening locally that are of importance to the jury pool. Has a large employer closed up shop? Is a large chunk of the community suddenly coping with layoffs? Any big issues with crime? Have there been recent high profile verdicts in civil or criminal cases? Has a recent event made the community proud? This is good material for voir dire as you try to get the jury pool talking, especially with follow up questions. Did a local sports team go to a state tournament? Were awards received by locals? If your case is against a local business, find out if it is well liked. Identify who the good guys are in the community and see if you can weave them into your trial story. Showing you spent the time to learn about the community is a form of respect the pro- spective jurors will appreciate. Awareness of local current events would have been helpful to one OTLA member who asked people in a small town that had just suffered huge layoffs to make a large damages award in an injury case. It did not go well. Knowledge of local current events can help you customize your questions for the pro- spective jurors and frame your damages ask appropriately. Wear the right clothes Small town jurors expect the attorneys to dress professionally. I caution against dressing casually or wearing jeans and boots as it will likely be perceived as disrespectful. Shoes should be polished. Colors and styles should lean toward unassuming. Leave your monogrammed dress shirts at home. If you must make a fashion statement with your tie, suit or shoes, know it may invite one or more jurors to give you a nickname. Small town jurors love nicknames and they are rarely flattering. In many rural Oregon counties, it gets scorching hot in the summer and early fall. You will need warm weather court- room attire. It can get hot in the court- room, especially in the historic court- houses. You do not want them to see you sweat, right?Well, that can be a challenge in a wool suit when it is 100 degrees and cloudless outside the courtroom. Build rapport Remember to slow down and pause from time to time to let your words sink in. Be careful about humor and politics. When you bomb, it is really bad. As my mentor told me, “If you’re going to be funny, be funny.” That was good advice. Take the time to smile now and then. Read the body language of the jurors and react. Set down your notes. Make eye contact. Sports analogies can be espe- cially effective. Small towns love their youth sports programs and many families attend their kids’ practices. Many jurors have either coached or have children who have played sports. You can learn a lot about a person by talking sports. Doing so during jury selection may reveal something you have in common with the jury pool. Small Town Continued from p 17 Hill (r) with Baker City OTLA member Damien Yervasi at the Baker County Court- house. They would remind you to be respectful of local values and customs when you try a case in small town Oregon.