Gainesville FL— Jurors last week handed down a $34.7 million total verdict against R.J. Reynolds after finding the company responsible for the throat cancer death of a Florida man. Bessent-Dixon v. R.J. Reynolds, 2015-CA-002554. 

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Arguing non-economic damages such as pain and suffering in a case that involves a serious, but not necessarily catastrophic injury can be difficult. Framing the injury so that jurors understand its severity while ensuring jurors don’t feel that the loss has been exaggerated is key to setting up the best possible award. And in the latest Trial Technique Spotlight, Shane Read, one of the country’s preeminent trial consultants, spotlights how Bethany Schneider powerfully framed a non-catastrophic traumatic brain injury to set up a $5.5 million total verdict. 

Regardless of which side of the courtroom you’re on, the right demonstratives in openings can be powerful tools to frame the message at the heart of your case. And in a trial last year against Monsanto over claims the company’s “Roundup” weed killer caused a woman’s cancer, a Katherine Hacker demonstrative that took inspiration from an iconic video game laid the groundwork for a major defense verdict. 

Defense surveillance video can be one of the most difficult pieces of evidence to overcome for a plaintiff’s attorney presenting a damages case. But in the latest episode of Trial Technique Spotlight, Shane Read, one of the nation’s leading trial consultants, details how Keith Mitnik flipped the message on defense surveillance video to win a $2.8 million verdict for a former college soccer player injured in a car crash.