Why Jurors Assess Big Damages

• Author: Jim Wren
• Pages: 39-68

1-1

1. Jurors

Assessing Big

Damages

Chapter 1

Why Jurors Assess Big

Damages

I. It All Starts With Credibility

§1:01 Credibility Is Vital When Damages Are Ambiguous

§1:02 Credibility Feeds the Emotional Need of Jurors for Safety and

Significance

§1:03 Credibility Requires Finding the Emotional Truth of Your

Damages Case

§1:04 Find the Emotional Truth of Your Damages Case Through

Personal Involvement

II. Jurors Crave the Opportunity to Do What Is Right and Significant

§1:10 A Sense of Significance Motivates

§1:11 Sympathy Does Not Motivate

§1:12 Anger Motivates, But Only If Used Correctly

§1:13 Jurors Understand and Protect Positive Values, But Negative

Values Are Confusing

§1:14 Family May Be the Most Important Positive Value

§1:15 Help Jurors Understand They Speak for the Community

§1:16 Use a Case Theme to Communicate the Moral Significance of

the Case

III. Jurors Respond to Evidence of Consciously Bad Violations

§1:20 Finding Consciously Bad Violations in Negligence Cases

§1:21 The Information Needed to Expose Consciously Bad Violations

§1:22 Articulating the Rules to Help Jurors Recognize Consciously Bad

Violations

§1:23 Using Conscious Violations to Build Anger as a Motivation for

Damages

§1:24 Reinforcing the Theme by Showing Why Each Standard Really

Matters

IV. Jurors May Care More About the Response to Injury Than the Injury

Itself

§1:30 Jurors Care About Motives and Choices

§1:31 Jurors Want to Be Part of the Story

Proving Damages to the Jury

1-2

1. Jurors

Assessing Big

Damages

§1:32 Post-Injury Acts and Omissions of the Defendant Are Usually

Waiting to Be Tapped

§1:33 Jurors Identify More With Overcomers Than With Victims

V. Jurors Want Your Guidance, If You Respect Their Right to Decide

§1:40 Jurors Respond to Priming (Intentional or Inadvertent) Like

Everyone Else

§1:41 Using the Total Damages Number as Its Own Anchor

§1:42 Using a Number From Outside the Case as the Anchor for

Damages

§1:43 Jurors Need Guidance to Justify the Amount of Damages

§1:44 Why Are You Suggesting This Specific Number?

VI. Putting It All Together

§1:50 This Book Is Dedicated to the Coherent Approach to Proving

Damages