National Jury Trial Innovations Project

The primary purpose and goal of the National Jury Trial Innovations Project (NJTIP) is quite simple: To implement innovations that make the jury trial a better place to teach and learn.

The NJTIP remains alive and well and active throughout the United States. IADC members have presented programs in numerous locations, including Ohio, Alaska, Georgia, Kansas, Nevada, Vermont, New York, Maryland, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Missouri and California. The audiences that have been reached include such diverse groups as the National Association of Women Judges; The University of Kansas Law School; The American College of Trial Lawyers; The National Association of Independent Insurers; and the New York State Commissioners of Jurors.

Since 1998, more than 150 NJTIP programs have been presented by IADC members, to more than 10,000 attorneys, judges, law school students and business professionals. Feedback from every forum and the obvious benefits to the IADC have been overwhelmingly positive. The Project's team leaders and program presenters are not planning to rest on what has been accomplished to date but, instead, look forward to moving the NJTIP further into the forefront of jury trial innovations and change.

Federal Innovations
Federal JuryInnovations (PDF)

State Innovations
The National Jury Trial Innovations Project is committed to monitoring the progress of state jury trial innovations. To learn more about jury innovations that have been implemented in various states, click on the state links below.

If you are interested in becoming more involved in The National Jury Trial Innovations Project by contributing to the research involved in updating this site, please e-mail foundation@iadclaw.org.

Alabama  (PDF)
Alaska (PDF)
Arizona (PDF)
Arkansas (PDF)
California (PDF)
Colorado (PDF)
Connecticut (PDF)
Delaware (PDF)
Florida (PDF)
Georgia (PDF)
Hawaii (PDF)
Idaho (PDF)
Illinois (PDF)
Indiana (PDF)
Iowa (PDF)
Kansas (PDF)
Kentucky (PDF)
Louisiana (PDF)
Maine (PDF)
Maryland (PDF)
Massachusetts (PDF)
Michigan (PDF)
Minnesota (PDF)
Mississippi (PDF)
Missouri (PDF)
Montana (PDF)
Nebraska (PDF)
Nevada (PDF)
New Hampshire (PDF)
New Jersey (PDF)
New Mexico (PDF)
New York (PDF)
North Carolina (PDF)
North Dakota (PDF)
Ohio (PDF)
Oklahoma (PDF)
Oregon (PDF)
Pennsylvania (PDF)
Rhode Island (PDF)
South Carolina (PDF)
South Dakota (PDF)
Tennessee (PDF)
Texas (PDF)
Utah (PDF)
Vermont (PDF)
Virginia (PDF)
Washington (PDF)
West Virginia (PDF)
Wisconsin (PDF)
Wyoming (PDF)

International Innovations


Modular Program
Each program begins with an overview of the Project followed by a summary of how jurors make decisions and process information. There are then 33 possible innovations for discussion. Certain ones will be selected for a given programs, usually based on time allotment and topics of interest to the audience.

Introduction

• Speaker Introductions
• Background of Project

• The Current Process
• A Different Perspective: "Order in the Classroom" (video)
• What a Jury Trial Should Be
• How Jurors Make Decisions
• How Jurors Process Information
• Innovations

1. Plain English at Trial
2. Opening Statements to the Entire Jury Panel
3. Lawyer-Conducted voir dire
4. Pre-instructing the Jury
5. Mini-Openings / Interim Commentary
6. Jury Instructions Before Closing Arguments
7. Plain English Jury Instruction
8. Written or Recorded Instructions for Jurors

1. Questionnaire to Assist Jury Selection
2. Jurors' Questions to Witnesses
3. Juror Discussions of Evidence During the Trial
4. Juror Questions About Instructions
5. Juror Note Taking

1. Pretrial Limits on Each Party's Time at Trial
2. Pretrial Admission of Exhibits and Deposition Testimony
3. Computer Simulations and Reenactments
4. Jury Tutorials
5. Jury Notebooks
6. Appointing Court Experts
7. Reordering the Sequence of Expert Testimony

1. One-Day / One-Trial Terms of Jury Service
2. Non-Designation of Alternates and Jurors
3. Permitting Alternates to Observe Deliberations
4. Modifying Daily Schedules
5. Suggestions for Jurors on Conducting Deliberations
6. Scheduling Jury Deliberations
7. Scheduling Verdict Announcements
8. A Few More Ideas:
   • Orientation Video
   • Jury Orientation via Cable Television
   • How to Relieve Jury Boredom
   • Place Cards or Seating Charts

1. Advice Regarding Post-Verdict Conversations
2. Informal Meetings Between the Judge and Jury
3. Post-Verdict Interviews by Attorneys and Researchers
4. Juror Exit Questionnaires
5. Debriefing Sessions to Alleviate Juror Stress

1. Innovations in Progress
2. How to Begin
3. Cite Authority
4. Experimentation
5. Sharing Successes
6. Conclusion

Organize a Program
More than 10,000 attorneys, judges, law school students and business professionals have attended programs of the Foundation's National Jury Trial Innovations Project. Team leaders are moving the program into the forefront of jury trial innovations and change.

If you would like to organize a program, please contact the IADC headquarters in Chicago at 312.368.1494 or e-mail foundation@iadclaw.org. The office will mail you a packet that includes suggested local contacts, listing of current team leaders, listing of past presenters, ideas on speaker guidelines and formats, attendee evaluation forms, the NJTIP PowerPoint presentation and modular program summary, and the entertaining DVD, "Order in the Classroom."

Thank you for your interest and support of this important project of the IADC Foundation.

Links


Practitioner Survey

Joint Survey Project with NCSC
The National Jury Trial Innovations Project of the IADC Foundation is working with the National Center for State Courts to document jury trial procedures in jurisdictions around the U.S. Ultimately, we hope to post the results of this and other surveys on the IADC website to allow viewers to access information on the jury trial innovations that have been adopted in the various courts. Please take a few minutes to complete the Practitioner Survey below, and return it to the IADC.
________________________________________

The survey is available to download in two formats, PDF and Microsoft Word. If you do not yet have Acrobat Reader to view PDF files, you can download it for FREE from: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html.

1) The PDF document should be downloaded, printed, filled out, and then faxed or mailed back to the IADC office.

Practitioner Survey (PDF)

2) The Microsoft Word document should be downloaded, filled out, saved, and then emailed back to the IADC office.

Practitioner Survey (MS Word)

________________________________________
Please send your completed questionnaire to the IADC office:
IADC - Attn: NJTIP
One North Franklin
Suite 1205
Chicago, IL 60606
Fax: 312.368.1854
E-mail: foundation@iadclaw.org  


Publications and Materials

Order In The Classroom DVD
What if a college course were taught using the procedures and rules of a jury trial? That is the premise of "Order in the Classroom," a satirical yet insightful DVD that has gained national attention as a vivid portrayal of the problems inherent in the jury trial system.
The video is part of a program on jury trial innovations being given throughout the U.S. by IADC members and teams of judges and attorneys form the defense and plaintiff bars. It is an excellent way to start discussions and introduce information on the topic of jury trial innovations. DVD length: 3 min. 28 sec.
Cost: $40
Order - link to new shopping cart module

Jury Trial Innovations
Jury Trial Innovations brings you up-to-date on the most recent techniques and ideas for improving the effectiveness and efficiency of jury trials. This monograph, which takes its organization from the stages of a typical jury trial, discusses the dynamics of jury decision making and reviews jury trial innovations used in state and federal courts across the country. Topics include "How to Relieve Juror Boredom," "Routine Use of Anonymous Juries," "Juror Questions to Witnesses," and "Post-verdict Debriefings with the Trial Judge." This is a joint publication of The National Center for State Courts and the American Bar Association’s Section of Litigation, with funding from the State Justice Institute.
Cost: $18
Order – link to new shopping cart module



Team Leaders
( Listed Alphabetically By State )

Alabama
Walter T. Gilmer, Jr. wgilmer@mcdowellknight.com  
William C. Wood wood@nwkt.com  

Alaska
John B. Thorsness jthorsness@cpsattorneys.com  
Clay A. Young cay@delaneywiles.com  

Arizona
F. Michael Carroll mcarroll@bcattorneys.com  
George H. Mitchell gmitchell@cavanaghlaw.com  

Arkansas
James Phillip Malcom malcom@fec.net  
Lucinda McDaniel lucinda@wlpmm-firm.com  

California
Jeffrey J. Christovich christovich@lbbslaw.com  
Kevin J. Dunne kevin.dunne@sdma.com  
Jack B. McCowan, Jr. jmccowan@gordonrees.com  
Regina A. Petty rpetty@wpkt.com  
Gregory C. Read gregory.read@sdma.com  
Archie Stirling Robinson asr@r-winc.com  
Timothy L. Walker walker@fwhb.com  

Colorado
Cathy Havener Greer cgreer@warllc.com  
Mary A. Wells mwells@warllc.com  

Connecticut
William R. Moller None listed
Eric Watt Wiechmann ewiechmann@mccarter.com  

DC, Washington
James A. Hourihan jahourihan@hhlaw.com  

Florida
Mercer K. Clarke bclarke@cswm.com  
Richard M. Dunn rmdunn@shb.com  
Edward R. Nicklaus edwardn@nicklauslaw.com  

Georgia
Lori G. Cohen lcohen@alston.com  
Clayton H. Farnham cfarnham@deflaw.com  
Andrew J. Hill, III ajh@bbgbalaw.com  
Albert H. Parnell alby840@aol.com  
Ronald D. Reemsnyder rdr@welchspell.com  

Idaho
J. Walter Sinclair jwsinclair@stoel.com  

Illinois
William J. Brinkmann wjbrinkm@tmh-law.com  
Daniel K. Cray dkc@iwancray.com  
Rex K. Linder rlinder@hrva.com  
Michael A. Pope mpope@mwe.com  
Jay H. Tressler jtressler@mail.tsmp.com  

Indiana
Larry G. Evans levans@hwelaw.com  
Randall R. Riggs rriggs@locke.com  
Ronald J. Waicukauski rwaicukauski@price-law.com  

Iowa
Gregory M. Lederer glederer@simmonsperrine.com  
John D. Mayne jmayne@maynelaw.com  

Kansas
Donald Patterson dpatterson@fisherpatterson.com  
Anthony F. Rupp trupp@stklaw.com  
Larry B. Spikes lbspikes@spikeslaw.com  
Randy J. Troutt troutt@hitefanning.com  

Louisiana
John S. Bradford jsbradford@ssvcs.com  
Terry Christovich Gay tcgay@christovich.com  
Gary G. Hebert ghebert@mcglinchey.com  
Edward J. Rice, Jr. edward.rice@arlaw.com  
Emmett C. Sole ecsole@ssvcs.com  
Quentin F. Urquhart, Jr. qurquhart@irwinllc.com  

Maine
Harold J. Friedman hfriedman@fgwl-law.com  

Maryland
Donald L. DeVries, Jr. dld@gdldlaw.com  
Bruce R. Parker brparker@venable.com  
Rudolph L. Rose rrose@semmes.com  
Richard W. Scheiner rscheiner@semmes.com  

Massachusetts
Brian P. Voke bvoke@campbell-trial-lawyers.com  
Rebecca J. Wilson rwilson@peabodyarnold.com  

Michigan
William D. Booth wbooth@plunkettcooney.com  

Minnesota
Tina M. Traficanti tmtraficanti@rkmc.com  

Mississippi
Harry R. Allen hallen@avchlaw.com  
Christy D. Jones christy.jones@butlersnow.com  
Landman Teller, Jr. lteller@tellerlaw.com  

Missouri
John W. Cowden cowden@bscr-law.com  
Lawrence B. Grebel lgrebel@bjpc.com  
Harvey L. Kaplan hkaplan@shb.com  
Patrick Lysaught lysaught@bscr-law.com  
Daniel T. Rabbitt rabbitt@rabbittlaw.com  

Montana
Michael J. Milodragovich bigskylaw@montana.com  

Nebraska
Walter E. Zink, II wzink@baylorlaw.com  

New Jersey
Brian C. Harris Bcharris@bhs-law.com  

New York
Judith A. Aydelott jaaydelott@aol.com  
Desmond T. Barry, Jr. dbarry@condonlaw.com  
George W. Collins, Jr. gcollins@bouvierlaw.com  
Mark Gregory Farrell judgefarrell@aol.com  
George S. Hodges ghodges@bghc-law.com  
Michael J. Holland mholland@condonlaw.com  
Harry F. Mooney hfm@hurwitzfine.com  
Susan C. Roney sroney@nixonpeabody.com  

North Carolina
Kirk G. Warner kwarner@smithlaw.com  

Ohio
Henry A. Hentemann pcooper@davisyoung.com  
Ronald H. Isroff risroff@ulmer.com  
James L. McCrystal, Jr. mccrystal@bqmlaw.com  
William G. Porter, II wgporter@vssp.com  
Joseph W. Ryan, Jr. jryan@porterwright.com  
Ralph Streza rstreza@porterwright.com  
David H. Wallace dwallace@taftlaw.com  

Oklahoma
A. Thomas Elder, Jr. telder@chubbucksmith.com 
Larry D. Ottaway larryottaway@oklahomacounsel.com  

Ontario, Canada
Lee Samis leesamis@samislaw.com  

Oregon
William B. Crow bcrow@schwabe.com  
Thomas A. Gordon tgordon@gordon-polscer.com  
Douglas G. Houser doug.houser@bullivant.com  

Pennsylvania
Debra S. Dunne ddunne@smsm.com  
Ann Thornton Field afield@cozen.com  
Reeder R. Fox fox@duanemorris.com  
Thomas P. Grace tgrace@bodellbove.com  
Paul M. Hummer phummer@saul.com  
George J. Murphy gmurphy@heckerbrown.com  
Joseph E. O'Neil jeo@lavin-law.com  
David J. Rosenberg drosenberg@wglaw.com  
James G. Rosenberg jrosenberg@saul.com  

South Carolina
William C. Cleveland, III wcleveland@bmsmlaw.com  
David E. Dukes david.dukes@nelsonmullins.com  

Tennessee
James M. Doran, Jr. jdoran@wallerlaw.com 
J. Kimbrough Johnson johnsonk@thomasonlaw.com  

Texas
David J. Beck dbeck@brsfirm.com 
Michael Connelly mconnelly@connellybaker.com  
Thad T. Dameris tdameris@pillsburywinthrop.com 
Otway B. Denny, Jr. odenny@fulbright.com  
Allan K. DuBois akd@greendubois.com
Donald H. Flanary, Jr. dflanary@flanarycarter.com  
Barbara Radnofsky bradnofsky@velaw.com  
Joe W. Redden, Jr. jredden@brsfirm.com  
Rebecca Jo Reser jreser@davidsontroilo.com  
Joseph F. Speelman joseph.speelman@lyondell.com  
Kenneth Tekell kvirgadamo@tbml.com  

Utah
Ray R. Christensen ray.christensen@chrisjen.com  

Vermont
Robert R. McKearin rmckearin@dinse.com  

Virginia
Glen A. Huff ghuff@hpmlaw.com  
James Watson Morris, III jmorris@morrismorris.com  

Washington
Christopher W. Tompkins ctompkins@bpmlaw.com  

Wisconsin
Edward A. Hannan ehannan@hannanlegal.com  
Timothy J. Muldowney tmuldowney@gklaw.com