Five Witness Preparation Mistakes - (Part II)

Sometimes attorneys make mistakes while preparing their witnesses to testify. Do you fall into this category? Read Part II of "Witness Preparation Mistakes" to find out below. (See Part I here).

1. Witness preparation is conducted too late. This is a two-part problem that includes waiting until after a witness bombs a deposition before real earnest witness preparation takes place, or waiting until "the eve" of trial to start properly preparing witnesses (or both). There are many reasons this happens, ranging from being very busy, to putting too much faith in untested witnesses, but it must be avoided at all costs. Waiting until it's too late can turn routine depositions into case liabilities, and can make the stress of trial testimony debilitating, causing undue frustration, stress and anxiety for the trial team and witnesses alike – not a good recipe for a favorable settlement or trial outcome.
2. Attorneys seek perfection. Perfect is the enemy of good. Some attorneys place too much emphasis on the perfect answer to each practice question they pose to their witnesses during preparation sessions. This approach manifests itself as constant corrections, adjustments, suggestions, and word-smithing of answers that were actually good enough. The result of hours and hours of this type of feedback is that the witness gets overwhelmed, tries to memorize answers, never quite measures up, quits believing in him or herself and starts to feel demoralized. It's important to remember that jurors don't think like attorneys, judges, experts, or computers; they think like lay people and they are the decision makers. So even if answers to potential questions aren't "perfect," consider the possibility that trying to make them so might do more harm than good.

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Please let me know in the comments other mistakes attorneys make while preparing their witnesses.