Powerful Witness Preparation
What Witness Preparation Means
by Holland & Knight
In the second episode of his "Powerful Witness Preparation" podcast series, litigation attorney Dan Small dives right into what witness preparation really entails and outlines seven steps lawyers need to take when preparing witnesses for testimony. Mr. Small explains that too many witnesses are not adequately prepared because lawyers fail to realize that being a witness is an entirely different experience than anything the client has been through before. His seven steps for preparation highlight a key idea for both lawyers and clients to keep in mind: Testimony is not a conversation, and much of what makes for a good conversation makes for bad testimony.
In the launch of his podcast series "Powerful Witness Preparation," litigation attorney Dan Small dives right into the fundamentals of calling a witness to the stand. Mr. Small describes the challenges of the unusual courtroom environment and explains why preparation is crucial. He emphasizes that communicating effectively in a question-and-answer format is an extraordinarily unnatural and difficult process, and he backs this up by drawing from an experience he had right out of law school when he observed a witness, former President Jimmy Carter's mother, "Miss Lillian."