by Kenneth J. Lopez, J.D., President
& CEO
Q: Timelines are used in every trial and their
only function is to help the Judge or Jury keep track of what happened
and when it happened, right?
A: Wrong. The best timelines persuade. (see below)
Animators' Litigation Consultants
and Information Designers routinely use an age-old courtroom tool, the
timeline, in a totally new way to help win more cases. I want to quickly
share with you the basics of our technique so that you may use it effectively
in your next trial or presentation. Recently, Animators at Law was hired
by Holland & Knight LLP to produce a group of trial
graphics and animations to defend one of its clients against allegations
of patent infringement. One of these exhibits was what we call a persuasive
timeline. Its purpose was to convey a 'big picture' message rather than
to be used, as most timelines are, as a detailed story telling device.
In consultation with our Animators at Law Information
Designers and our Litigation Consultants, all of whom are attorneys, we
created a timeline with icons representing the many press releases, meetings
and trade shows during which the Plaintiff learned about the Defendant's
competing technology. The iconic approach quickly conveys the sheer cumulative
volume of the Plaintiff's opportunities to discover the Defendant's of
the technology that was later accused. This relatively simply approach
to retelling the facts visually was designed to leave the jury with a
strong and clear message:
Plaintiff
had 17 years and dozens of opportunities to claim infringement but never
did.
With talented lawyering and help from
effective trial graphics such as this one, the jury found no infringement
in this case and awarded nothing to the Plaintiff.
To learn more about these techniques,
to request a proposal for upcoming litigation or to have a presentation
made to your firm on these and other subjects please contact:
Bill Yarnoff
sales@animators.com
1.800.337.7697 ext 122
703.548.1799 ext 122
703.548.5450 (fax)
Animators at Law is the nation's leading attorney owned and operated
producer of trial exhibits, jury research and animation. To date, Animators
has consulted on hundreds of significant national cases with cumulative
favorable decisions exceeding one trillion dollars. Our clients include
more than three quarters of the nation's top 20 law firms and hundreds
of others. While most of our team is based in our Washington, DC headquarters,
local offices and relationships allow us to easily work in New York,
Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Texas, Florida & Philadelphia.
One important factor which immediately sets Animators apart from its
competitors is the fact that Animators is attorney-owned and operated.
As a result, the team at Animators can immediately grasp even the most
complex legal issues, and can offer a higher level of insight into the
development of effective trial exhibits. This critical distinction also
serves to save the client money by allowing the client to focus solely
on their case, rather than having to waste valuable time explaining
basic legal concepts. This advantage is particularly important in the
context of litigation because of the rigid deadlines and intense time
pressure which litigators often face.
