How to Prepare Clients to Testify

I want to talk to you today about preparing our clients to testify. And I’m going to use an example of a sexual assault trial for example, and it applies really in any criminal charge. It is so important to properly prepare your client to testify because if they don’t testify well at the trial, the odds of winning go way, way down. So that’s a it’s a long, laborious process. You just don’t show up at trial and start talking. It’s not like, you know, it’s not like we’re on the street here just telling the story. There’s a certain way of doing things in a trial. So the process starts very early. When I get for example, a sexual assault file, I review the disclosure with the client. And I asked them to provide a very detailed written statement from start to finish chronologically. All the background would happen that day. And then I review with them and we do various edits to make it a more user friendly way and it becomes our roadmap of our expectations for the trial and our roadmap for preparation for the trial. So we might go through various drafts of that statement until we have it the way we want to testify at the trial. And it’s a client’s words but we work with and we shape it. There’s certain ways of phrasing things. You know, that the same story could be told 10 different ways. The truth can be told 10 different ways and it can be told in a way that doesn’t make sense or told in a way that flows logically, and comprehensively. So about a month or two before the trial, what I do is I start educating the client about how to testify. So I provide them with these, I printed out a whole bunch of sheets about tips. How to present yourself in court, how to use your hands, where to stand, what to say what to wear, everything so important. You know yourself. Look, a person can be the best lawyer in the world and come across beautifully. And unfortunately, the most truthful client or witness in the world can come across terribly and sound like a liar because they don’t present themselves well. It’s my job to get that client to present themselves well, to tell their story in a very logical way. With no holes in it, and to face the cross examination of the crown. That takes hours and hours of preparation. So what I do is I go through various mock examinations in chief. That’s where I am asking them the questions that I’m going to ask them at the court and this takes hours in the office, and then I give them constructive criticism about ways to approve. You’re not coming across well here, you’re not expressing this well, etc., etc. And that that’s an hours and hours process and a sexual assault trial if you want to win that is. Then after that’s completed. I go through mock cross examinations. So I pretend I’m the Crown Attorney and again I cross examination for hours give them constructive criticism, about the ways to improve, until we’re there at the point we want them. Most of my clients, truthful clients, clients that are lying, who knows, I don’t know who, who, who’s telling the truth, who’s lying, they’re coming in court to testify. Most of them when they first do a mock cross examination, don’t come across well, the most truthful person in the world who’s never been in a courtroom is not going to come across well, unless a lawyer prepares them properly. It takes hours if your lawyers not doing that for you. You’re not having a good service. Believe me, that’s what we want to do in order to win our case. So once we’re all set, once there’s an a performance on our final mock examinations, we’re ready to go. And in sexual assault trials, I can tell you, in most of the sexual assault trials, I do the client has to testify. If they don’t come across well, well, your odds of winning are gone way, way down. That’s the whole key, I find winning any sexual assault case. In addition to challenging the evidence and crown, your client has to come across very well. And I’ll tell you, that’s my job to get them there. Thank you for watching our video, we are absolutely committed to bringing you the best possible criminal and DUI educational videos. If you found this video helpful, please like it and subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you’ve been charged with a criminal offence and Ontario and require our services, please click on the link in the description below.