Mark Lanier's damages road map is part of one of CVN's new playlists on demonstratives in closings. Check out the entire Playlist Library here.
A creative demonstrative can be a powerful tool to bolster a damages argument and memorably summarize the fallout from an injury at the heart of a case. And in a headline-grabbing talc trial, Mark Lanier took jurors along a damages “road map” that ultimately led to a massive trial verdict.
Lanier, of the Lanier Law Firm, represented the plaintiffs, who claimed that exposure to J&J’s talc-based products caused ovarian cancer. During the five-week trial, Lanier used a road map theme to guide jurors through his case. And in his damages request, he capped that theme by building a road map of “everyday life.”
Lanier describes the women that developed cancer as going through their normal lives, using J&J talc products, before their journey was derailed, and they were stuck in a “damage swamp, where there is no exit,” Lanier says of the plaintiffs. “This is where you’ll live the rest of your life.”
As he speaks, Lanier displays his road map, complete with a sketch of a “swamp” that holds all of the issues he says the women and their loved ones face: from surgery and the loss of body parts, to chemotherapy, death, and survivor’s guilt.
Lanier outlines each of these elements, his voice rising, his cadence increasing as he lists the effects of the cancer on the women. “And [they] get one trial out of all of this. This is the one!” Lanier concludes. “So when you get to that damage figure, please, please please, think through.”
Jurors ultimately awarded $4.69 billion in damages, including $550 million in compensatories.
Part of CVN's Newest Collection of Trial-Winning Techniques
That video is just one example in CVN’s new playlist on demonstratives in closing arguments, featuring powerful examples of how attorneys have used demonstratives to strengthen their closings in a variety of ways, across a range of cases. In addition to Lanier, you’ll see:
- How Lloyd Bell spotlighted the devastation of a catastrophic stroke and his continuing resolve, en route to a $75 million med mal verdict.
- How Allison Brown illustrated the “mountain” of a burden of proof she said plaintiff failed to summit, as she set up a talc trial win.
- How Keith Mitnik’s use of a dining room napkin blunted defense wear and tear causation arguments in a crash trial, winning a seven-figure verdict.
And much more. Watch now (for subscribers only).
And that playlist on demonstratives is among a trio of new playlists focused on powerful techniques in closings. Other new playlists include Addressing Opposing Counsel Arguments and Appealing to Common Sense.
It’s all part of our new and ever-growing Playlist Library, a curated collection of video clips of trial techniques employed by the nation’s best attorneys. CVN Playlists features dozens of lists and hundreds of clips across all phases of trial, developed with an eye toward improving your courtroom skills. You'll learn the keys to a damages argument, effective examples of voir dire, and so much more.
Check out the Playlist Library now.
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Email Arlin Crisco at acrisco@cvn.com.
