How to Make an Efficient Entrance as an Expert Witness

“Call the witness!"

Yes, that is you. And it is your time to shine or fade. Going into court is a combination of many things. It is partly a first date, partly a conversation with your boss, and partly a public speech. You will have butterflies as an expert witness. But if you enjoy center stage, you will get over them in moments.

Your audience - the jury, most importantly - wonders what you have to say, and how well you will say it; in the first seconds after you walk in the door, most of the people in the room are forming judgments about you.

They wonder if you are worth the money you are being paid. They wonder who dressed you that morning. They wonder about your hairstyle. You do not need to spend $400 on a Hollywood hairstylist, but you do need a haircut.

Beyond your appearance, the jurors wonder if you can make heads or tails out of what they have heard so far in the case. If they haven't yet judged the contents of the case, they wonder whether you will be able to describe it to them any better than the previous witnesses and attorneys.

They wonder what your manner of walking says about you. Are you strutting down the aisle to the witness box? Overconfident, cocky. Are you shuffling down the aisle to the witness box? Uncertain, unbelievable. Are you walking briskly but confidently? All business, sure of himself. Okay, let's hear what he has to say.

All those impressions form before you open your mouth to say your first word. The moment you begin to speak, everyone hears your voice, they see your posture in the witness box, they note how pleasantly or confidently you look at the attorneys, the judge, and the jurors. They observe whether you avert your gaze by shyly looking down at your papers or at the floor. They judge in advance and without justification whether they should believe what you have to say, before you have even said it.

It’s show time!