Recommended Citation
Maureen A. Howard, Direct Examination: Lawyer as Director, Apr. 2010 De Novo 11 (2010), https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/faculty-articles/526
Publication Title
De Novo
Document Type
Article
Abstract
A trial lawyer presenting her case in chief through direct examination is somewhat like a film director: the lawyer thoroughly analyzes the case and develops a plan for the most effective way to present the case to the jury to best advance her theme and theory. Just as no script would play out on film the exact same way in the hands of different directors, no case would be presented in exactly the same way by different trial lawyers. Yet there are constants to be found in the steps effective trial lawyers take during their case in chief when presenting their evidence through direct examination.