John “Jack” Peters’ Post

One of the reasons I decided to come back to Hall & Evans recently is that the attorneys here know how to try cases and aren't afraid of the courtroom. I've tried more than fifty cases to juries and it's important to me to work with other attorneys who not only understand courtroom litigation, but actually have the experience doing it. One of the skills you can only develop through actual trial work is picking and advocating to a jury. For the litigators out there, please consider coming to the CBA Litigators' Summit this Thursday where I'll be presenting about the impact of diversity on jury deliberations and how to create diverse juries. Research shows diverse juries have wider ranging deliberations and reach verdicts that are better across almost all metrics. Plus diversity protects against deliberations tainted by bias and ignorance. And because those still impact trials shockingly often, I'll be discussing steps trial lawyers can take to ask for a new trial when verdicts are based on animus and harmful stereotypes, rather than actual evidence. As attorneys on the front lines of often high profile trials, it serves the interests of our clients and our communities to pick juries who will reach fair and unbiased verdicts and increase confidence in the court system.