The CSI Blog

Critical Communications    |    Records & Depositions    |    Litigation Psychology


What is the difference between a focus group & mock trial?
When exploring research options, clients often ask about the difference between a Focus Group and a Mock Trial. These terms are often used interchangeably but there are, in fact, important and relevant differences. The distinction between a Focus Group versus a Mock Trial may be thought of primari...
George R. Speckart, Ph.D. - Litigation Psychology
— July 2021 — 63 views Confirmatory research Exploratory research Focus groups Jurors Litigation psychology Mock trials Trial consulting


Litigation Psychology Podcast #80 - The danger of safety
Steve Wood, Ph.D. and Bill Kanasky, Jr., Ph.D. discuss the litigation risks and dangers for companies that make statements like "Safety is our top priority." Steve and Bill talk about how and why that seemingly innocuous statement is neither true nor accurate and how the plaintiff's bar has succes...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— July 2021 — 84 views Anti-reptile Communications Litigation psychology Nuclear verdicts Reptile Trucking & transportation Witness training


Jury trials during a pandemic: what to consider - part 3
In part 1 of this article about the key factors that trial attorneys, in-house counsel, and claims professionals should consider in evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of a civil jury trial in the midst and wake of the coronavirus pandemic, we wrote about jurors’ perceptions of corporatio...
Melissa Loberg, Ph.D. & Lorie Sicafuse, Ph.D.
— July 2021 — 97 views Anti-reptile COVID-19 Jurors Jury consulting Litigation psychology Reptile Research Trial consulting


Jury trials during a pandemic: what to consider - part 2
In part 1 of this article , we covered two of the four key factors that trial attorneys, in-house counsel, and claims professionals should consider in evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of a civil jury trial in the midst and wake of the coronavirus pandemic. In this second part, we discu...
Melissa Loberg, Ph.D. & Lorie Sicafuse, Ph.D.
— July 2021 — 136 views Anti-reptile COVID-19 Jurors Jury consulting Litigation psychology Reptile Research Trial consulting


Litigation Psychology Podcast #78 - Trucking defense software
Steven Bryan, CEO and Doug Marcello, Chief Legal Officer, of Bluewire join the podcast to talk about their new company that uses software to help trucking companies identify reputational vulnerabilities in the defense of their litigation. Steven provides some background on how the company came a...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— July 2021 — 152 views Anti-reptile Insurance defense Nuclear verdicts Reptile Trucking & transportation


Jury trials during a pandemic: what to consider - part 1
Despite the ongoing pandemic, civil jury trials have resumed in many venues throughout the United States. There is little doubt that the frequency of civil jury trials will increase with more widespread distribution of vaccines and the implementation of new social distancing courtroom protocols. C...
Melissa Loberg, Ph.D. & Lorie Sicafuse, Ph.D.
— July 2021 — 161 views Anti-reptile COVID-19 Jurors Jury consulting Litigation psychology Reptile Research Trial consulting


Litigation Psychology Podcast #77 - Safety is NOT your top priority
Sean Murphy, Practice Leader, CSI Critical Communications joins Dr. Steve Wood to talk about the myth that safety is the top priority for most businesses. Many company communications, mission statements, and handbooks default to stating that the safety of their employees/customers/shareholders/com...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— July 2021 — 245 views Communications COVID-19 Crisis Enterprise risk management Social media


Advantages of desktop videoconferencing for depositions
Now that there is again a choice (in most cases) of conducting depositions in-person or remotely, how do you decide which approach is best? Although there are several factors to consider, you should know that CSI offers convenient and cost-effective desktop videoconferencing for depositions. Attor...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— June 2021 — 200 views Court reporting Depositions


Myth #6 - Safety is your top priority
We are going to make a statement that will likely cause severe discomfort for safety directors and risk managers alike – “Safety is NOT your top priority.” We repeat, “Safety is NOT your top priority.” Let us clarify this statement, though. Just because we are saying that safety is not your TOP pr...
Steve Wood, Ph.D. & Sean Murphy
— June 2021 — 338 views Anti-reptile Communications COVID-19 Crisis Litigation psychology Reptile


Litigation Psychology Podcast #73 - Cognitive fatigue
In this episode of The Litigation Psychology Podcast, Dr. Bill Kanasky talks about preventing nuclear settlements at deposition by doing a better job of managing the cognitive fatigue of witnesses during deposition testimony. Scientific evidence makes clear that witnesses begin to fatigue mentally...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— June 2021 — 201 views Anti-reptile Depositions Litigation psychology Nuclear verdicts Reptile Settlements Witness training


Litigation Psychology Podcast #72 - Trucking and construction litigation
Eric Miersma, Attorney with Balestreri Potocki & Holmes, and a former commercial truck driver, joins the podcast to discuss both trucking and construction litigation. Eric compares and contrasts the two different types of litigation, noting that construction players often have lots of experience w...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— May 2021 — 221 views Depositions Jurors Jury consulting Litigation psychology Nuclear verdicts Trial consulting Trucking & transportation Witness training


Myth #5: All mock trials are the same
In a prior myth , I dispelled the notion that it is too expensive to use a Litigation Consultant. For my next entry in the  Myths of Litigation Science, I turn my attention toward the decision that clients have to make after deciding to engage a Litigation Consultant – price. This can be a  se...
Steve Wood, Ph.D. - Litigation Psychology
— May 2021 — 318 views Confirmatory research Focus groups Litigation psychology Mock trials Research Scientific method Trial consulting


A closer look at real-time feedback devices
Every so often, a client will ask us about usage of hand-held feedback devices, often called Perception Analyzers or “moment-to-moment” data collection systems, for utilization in jury research projects. Being trained researchers at heart, we have conducted extensive research on these devices and ...
George R. Speckart, Ph.D. - Litigation Psychology
— April 2021 — 256 views Confirmatory research Exploratory research Jury consulting Litigation psychology Mock trials Research Scientific method Trial consulting


Litigation Psychology Podcast #66 - Women in trucking
Ellen Voie, President and CEO of the Women in Trucking Association , joins the podcast to talk with Dr. Bill Kanasky about this association she started in 2007. Ellen and Bill discuss how and why the organization began, who its members are (its not only women!) and the roles that women play in t...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— April 2021 — 326 views Trucking & transportation


Litigation Psychology Podcast #63 - Reptile and anchoring
Attorney Nick Rauch with Larson King in St. Paul, Minnesota joins the podcast and talks with Dr. Bill Kanasky about his recent article in For the Defense on counter anchoring and the reverse reptile and how he has used reverse reptile in depositions. Nick explains the concepts of anchoring and cou...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— March 2021 — 419 views Anti-reptile Depositions Litigation psychology Reptile Witness training


Is fear of science costing your firm? - part 2
In the first part of this topic , we introduced the role of science and prediction in litigation and an overview of the jury research industry. In part two, we examine the importance of predictive validity and how it is achieved to provide actionable insight. * * *   * * Establishing Qualificati...
George R. Speckart, Ph.D. - Litigation Psychology
— March 2021 — 349 views Confirmatory research Exploratory research Focus groups Jury consulting Litigation psychology Mock trials Research Scientific method Trial consulting


Is fear of science costing your firm? - part 1
After spending thirty years working with trial teams, the same types of questions seem to continually surface: “How much will a jury award?”  “Will this theme be persuasive?”  “What kinds of jurors will be most receptive to my case?”  Scrutiny of the underlying factual issues underlying these ques...
George R. Speckart, Ph.D. - Litigation Psychology
— March 2021 — 338 views Confirmatory research Exploratory research Focus groups Jury consulting Litigation psychology Mock trials Research Scientific method Trial consulting


Litigation Psychology Podcast #61 - Preparing witnesses
Brad Hughes, trial lawyer with Clark Hill in Los Angeles, joins the podcast to talk about the differences in how he approaches a catastrophic injury case in his transportation litigation work versus a corporate matter. Dr. Bill Kanasky and Brad discuss the increasing presence of Reptile in commer...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— March 2021 — 460 views Anti-reptile Depositions Litigation psychology Reptile Trucking & transportation Witness training


Litigation Psychology Podcast #60 - Managing trucking litigation
Trucking defense attorney Sophia Bernard of Lewis Brisbois in Tampa joins the podcast to talk about transportation and trucking litigation and her process on handling catastrophic cases. She discusses the difficulties of dealing with the emotion of the driver and the importance of recognizing and ...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— March 2021 — 553 views Litigation psychology Reptile Trucking & transportation Witness training


Litigation Psychology Podcast #58 - Zoom trials
Shareholder and defense attorney Heather Snider from Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney in Chicago joins the podcast and shares her experience with a recent 5-day Zoom bench trial, including what worked, what didn't, how technical issues and objections were handled, and more. Heather and Dr. Bill ...
CSI - Courtroom Sciences Inc
— February 2021 — 551 views Anti-reptile Depositions Litigation psychology Reptile Trial consulting Witness training