The Importance of Witness Preparation in Legal Cases
Regarding legal cases, witnesses can either make or break the case. The more prepared your witnesses are, the better your chances of winning the hearing. In this article, we will discuss why witness training is important for your legal case.
At Jonathan Leach, located in El Paso, TX, we are a trial consulting firm that specializes in witness preparation in addition to helping attorneys. We’re your team if you’re gearing up for a legal case and need your witnesses to be ready for anything. If you’re interested in a free consultation, call us at (972) 890-8482 today!
Readying Your Witnesses
Aside from the evidence and argument, your witnesses can play an essential role in your legal case. The proper witness training can provide you with a quality testimony. You want your witness to deliver facts and a straightforward story to support your case. When witness preparation is done correctly, it can lead to:
- Answer questions with confidence, care, and calmness throughout the testimony
- Keep the jury’s attention and sympathy
- Understand how to undermine the opposition during a cross-examination
- Properly deliver the goal of your case
When with our team, witness training goes through a variety of topics that can either improve the witness’s ability to testify or help them learn general information. These training topics can include:
- Ticks associated with lying or prevaricating
- Proper courtroom etiquette
- Proper testimony etiquette
- Understanding nonverbal communication
- How to communicate properly
- Working through cognitive tricks during cross-examination
- Different presentation techniques
- Managing anxiety and nervousness
- Addressing possible concerns
- How to read the jury based on behavior
- (If applicable) on-camera training if a witness needs to testify via video call.
Sometimes, a witness is only needed for a short time on one day, but there are occurrences where they are required for multi-day trials. Whether you’re on the stand for 20 minutes or three days, witness training is essential to the case. The witness is being observed before they get the chance to begin testifying. This is why it’s also important to remember basic considerations like:
- Dress professionally and comfortably
- Avoid clothes with logos, holes, or excessive accessories
- Get a good night’s sleep, and remember to stay hydrated
- Eat healthy snacks to keep your energy up
- Arrive at the courthouse early
- 15 minutes early is recommended
Witness Preparation in El Paso
At Jonathan Leach, we offer witness preparation in El Paso to ensure a credible and accurate testimony. If you believe witness training is needed in your case, call us today at (972) 890-8482!