Comments on: You’re Not Listening!

By: Asreth

Asreth — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 14:27:00 +0000

I think listening is an important skill no matter what you’re doing. I’m a law librarian and I’ve lost track of the number of pro se’s who will give you the entire story as a lead up to their question. I don’t really want to hear it, but they need to tell it. Truw, some of them seem to think that in the course of their story I’ll magically become a lawyer and suddenly be willing to tell them what to do, but most of them simply want to have someone listen to their story. I don’t have to say or do anything more than listen. I would guess that a major source of frustration with the legal system is that people go into a law suit thinking they’ll get to tell their story and then they find out it doesn’t work like that.

By: S.C. Ruffey

S.C. Ruffey — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 13:50:00 +0000

Generally mass voir dire. The entire panel is questioned at once, but we can ask questions of individual veniremen as well. Veniremen can answer sensitive questions at sidebar, if they so desire.

The problem is that the judges push hard to "move it along." Misdemeanor voir dire generally takes about 15-20 minutes and most felonies top out at an hour. Sex cases get a lot more leeway from the judge and will usually take 3-4 hours. But even in a murder case jury selection will be done in less than one day.

Your mileage may vary depending on which circuit you are in.

By: Mark Bennett

Mark Bennett — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 15:30:00 +0000

pro.v — good point. We should never ignore the insight of the rank amateurs — they have a view of the proceedings that we can never again have. I’ll let your “the People” comment slide, ya ol’ leftie!

matlock, you can’t be in the moment without listening, and you can’t listen without being in the moment. So yes.

s.c., do you do individual voir dire or mass voir dire in Georgia?

By: S.C. Ruffey

S.C. Ruffey — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 13:19:00 +0000

You are absolutely right, but it is a very hard skill to learn. And, for me at least, Voir Dire is the hardest place to listen – I have the worst time getting jurors to talk – but I keep working on it.

By: pro.victims

pro.victims — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 03:23:00 +0000

Some of the best insight I ever got came from people who were disinterested, but watching the trial. Strangers. Other defendants’ family members, and such. Public courtrooms: they help The People (truth of truth!) as much as they help the defense.

By: Matlock

Matlock — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 03:23:00 +0000

Would that be classified as “In the moment Voir Dire?”