In a court case, there are many moving parts – you have attorneys, the accused, the judge, and other legal workers who play prominent roles in the outcome of the case. Everyone knows the group of peers who are included in a court case to determine if the accused is guilty or innocent, but many do not know about how this group comes to be.
Jury consultant responsibilities
A jury consultant plays a very important role in the court process. This position has specific jobs they need to perform before the court proceedings begin, during the trial itself, and after the proceedings come to an end. Although jury consultants are often overlooked for more prominent jobs, like the judge or the counsel, they play vital roles in the legal process in all steps of the way.
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The main jobs of the jury consultant in the pretrial period before a court case is the following:
- Research the background of the juror’s to see if they are viable to use for the court case
- Jury consultants have to see if each juror may have a potential stance or background that could make them unavailable for selection for the trial through the process of jury de-selection. If the potential juror has a bias towards a specific party in the case or cannot make a judgment without bias, they will be unselected due to their status as high-risk individuals.
- Create juror profiles to determine who is from where, their stances, their age, and their background.
- Help with jury selection and question the prospective jurors
- Conduct focus groups and mock trials to prepare for the real trial
- Conduct pretrial data analysis and research about the jurors
- Analyze demographic data – who lives in the area, the age of the people, the ethnic groups, etc.
- Draft analytical reports
Once the trial begins, a jury consultant will work to develop trial strategies to help influence and mold the jury’s perceptions to get a positive outcome. The jury consultant is in charge of the following:
- Give insight into the juror’s facial expressions, body language, and physical behavior during the trial
- Coach witnesses through the questioning methods used in the trial
- Help lawyers come up with the best arguments for their side by analyzing the jury’s behavior
- Create courtroom graphics to help attorneys tell the ‘story’ of what happened during the alleged crime
Jury consultant education, training, and skills
Before you can become a jury consultant, you have to earn the proper education, training, and certifications to qualify to work in a court of law.
- Education: Ury consultants almost all contain a Bachelor’s Degree, with most also earning their Master’s Degree or Ph.D. in behavior or psychological-related fields, such as criminology or psychology.
- Experience: Jury consultants need to have ample experience before they can be used in court cases, analyzing human behavior, reading clues, and containing several years of working as a criminologist or psychologist.
- Skills: Jury consultants must possess certain skills to be able to flourish in their industry, such as behavioral insight, interpersonal abilities, writing skills, research abilities, legal knowledge, and business development.
Conclusion
Working as a jury consultant has an influential part in the trial and the outcome of the court case. By having numerous important roles in the pretrial period, during the court proceedings, and after the trial has ended, jury consultants can influence how the jury sees facts, how the attorneys will present their arguments, and how jury members will be selected.