Who Will Speak for the Victim?

The subtitle of Who Will Speak for the Victim? is A Practical Treatise on Plaintiff's Jury Argument, and it is practical. Chapters address methods of arguing liability and damages in various types of personal injury cases, emphasizing the most effective approaches to relating the evidence and argument to the specific questions the jury must answer. If you primarily represent defendants, you will also find it helpful to review techniques the author describes to encourage large verdicts. But the extraordinary thing about this book is that all the practical tips, from basic forensic principles to how to help jurors develop a positive perception of your clients, couched in a cogent wit that is highly entertaining.

Although it is written by a personal injury plaintiff's lawyer, defense counsel, as well as business, corporate, and family lawyers will find that many of the concepts apply to their diverse specialties. Dozens of actual courtroom scenes illustrate jury persuasion and argument techniques that work—and those that don't. Perdue explores basic forensic principles such as posture, movement, vocal tone, pitch, and verbal content in these instructive pages, along with more advanced techniques like the art of subliminal persuasion. This readable book will help every trial advocate not only to develop more compelling arguments but also to present summations that are entertaining and provocative.

For the plaintiff's advocate, chapters address methods of arguing liability and damages in various types of personal injury cases. The last four chapters present complete summations, taken from actual cases, that tie together the techniques and concepts explored throughout the book.

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