HOW TO: Appeal to Jurors of All Learning Styles

Jurors are fact finders. The jurors must determine what facts the evidence has established. Once the jurors have decided what facts they determine to be the truth of the case, the jury will make conclusions based on that truth. In a criminal case, the conclusion made is whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty. And in a civil case, the conclusion will determine whether the defendant is liable or not liable. Thus, to receive a favorable conclusion, it is important that jurors are able to process the evidence you present and recall it during deliberations. In order to ensure jurors are processing and retaining the evidence you present to them, one must understand how jurors learn.

There are four core learning styles: visual, auditory, reading and writing, and kinesthetic. Juries may be made up of individuals with any of the four learning styles. Thus, it is important for attorneys to present the case in a way that caters to multiple learning styles because we want the jury to recall more of the evidence you present. Studies show that jurors process the evidence and inferences presented to them by constructing a narrative story. If the story has gaps, jurors provide that information themselves to complete the story. Therefore, the attorney’s goal should be to tell a story that make senses and has little to no gaps in the timeline. The attorney that makes it easiest for the jurors to construct a story will most likely prevail. The attorney does this by transferring the information in modes that cater to different learning styles.

Attorneys can achieve greater information retention among jurors by presenting their information in chronological order, with graphics-based exhibits, demonstrative evidence, repeating important facts throughout the trial, and emphasizing the themes at every opportunity. Some jurisdictions allow jurors to take notes which greatly caters to reading and writing learners. However, this may not be the case in your jurisdictions, but if it is, see here. Presenting the information in chronological order allows the juror to piece the story together more easily because it is told essentially in a story form. Further, using graphic-based exhibits and demonstrative evidence keeps the jurors engaged and allows the visual learner to physically see what you are attempting to illustrate. Lastly, repeating facts and emphasizing themes throughout the presentation is helpful for auditory learners. The juror is given lots of information to process as well as conflicting arguments, thus by repeating the keys pieces of evidence that are favorable to your case, the jurors will be more likely to recall that evidence and use it against the conflicting evidence presented.

Attorneys should evaluate their presentation and determine where he/she can effectively add the above presentation tools to aid in the juror retaining more of the information presented. These are helpful tools especially useful when an attorney is attempting to explain complex information in highly technical trials. For greater discussion of this topic, please see here.