Is It Okay To Express Anger In A Courtroom?
Transcription
Sari de la Motte here, I'm based in Portland, Oregon. I specialize in helping attorneys communicate with jurors.
In today's video we're going to talk about whether or not it is appropriate to express anger in court. To answer that question, we have to look at what anger communicates to the jury. Here's what it communicates: When you are angry, you are communicating to the jury that this is personal, and therefore what you're asking the jury to do, is not award your client a verdict, but to award you a verdict. There's no jury in the universe that is going to award you, the attorney, a verdict. But when I say this to my clients, they tend to say things like, "Well, it just makes me so angry how the truth is being trounced by the defense!" Listen, the truth needs no defense, it needs a voice.
You are more able to give it a voice when you are calm and centered and grounded, not angry. Not to mention, that when you are angry, you take space for anger in the courtroom, instead of leaving space for the jury, who are the people we actually want to be angry. You get a higher verdict when we have that angry jury back in the verdict room, really giving it to the defense. But if you're angry, you take up space that belongs to the jury. So instead of being angry, remain calm and grounded and cool and collected, and let the truth speak for itself.
In today's video we're going to talk about whether or not it is appropriate to express anger in court. To answer that question, we have to look at what anger communicates to the jury. Here's what it communicates: When you are angry, you are communicating to the jury that this is personal, and therefore what you're asking the jury to do, is not award your client a verdict, but to award you a verdict. There's no jury in the universe that is going to award you, the attorney, a verdict. But when I say this to my clients, they tend to say things like, "Well, it just makes me so angry how the truth is being trounced by the defense!" Listen, the truth needs no defense, it needs a voice.
You are more able to give it a voice when you are calm and centered and grounded, not angry. Not to mention, that when you are angry, you take space for anger in the courtroom, instead of leaving space for the jury, who are the people we actually want to be angry. You get a higher verdict when we have that angry jury back in the verdict room, really giving it to the defense. But if you're angry, you take up space that belongs to the jury. So instead of being angry, remain calm and grounded and cool and collected, and let the truth speak for itself.