Yes, I know, the title says, “The Right Words for Trial Lawyers”, and this stretches the topic. But, successful trial lawyer talk through visuals without text because they help jurors understand subjects with which they are usually unfamiliar. Trial lawyers use visual analogies. The images remind the audience of physical things that they can relate to. The images can replace a complex concept, showing it to the viewer in simpler and more understandable form, and thereby enabling the lawyer to explain the concept in understandable terms.
Here are a couple examples from Visual Litigation: Visual Communication Strategies and Today’s Technology.
THE STAIRCASE
Defense counsel used this staircase analogy to illustrate and explain the plaintiff’s burden of proof with each stair representing an element that needed to be proven.
THE ICEBERG
With this iceberg analogy, showing the visible above-water and smaller part—Defense Cost—contrasting to the larger under-water Damages.
As with all analogies and metaphors, it’s good to test them out on folks to make sure that they work, are not offensive and cannot be turned back on the user. Baseball analogies usually result in opposing counsel claiming the user of the analogy struck out.
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