Nothing makes the point more accurately and with greater impact than video. Displaying the facts in high definition courtroom video presentations can make all the difference to the success or failure of a case. More than just clear, accurate video depositions, legal videos can provide demonstrations of machinery, medical devices, and other equipment. A video tells the story in words and pictures, making it more understandable for all who see it. High definition, professionally made legal video wins cases because the facts and issues involved are more easily understood.

The Use of Legal Video in a Court Case Requires Planning

Attorneys consult with professionally created legal video presentation experts early in their case to plan what videos are needed and how they will be more effectively used in court. Video depositions, courtroom video, and PowerPoint trial presentations containing video require careful planning and editing in order to present powerful visual evidence in court. Litigation attorneys, more often than not, are including legal videos in their overall case strategy.

Legal video preparation goes beyond just setting up a camera and taking a video. The way the video is edited can make a dramatic difference in the way it is viewed and understood. This includes video enhancement of evidence and documents, slow motion, close-ups of faces and evidence, titles, still images, seamless transitions, and the right digital equipment and software to provide the highest quality possible by experienced legal video experts.

Legal video services might also include video and text streaming with both live and recorded presentations, as well as remote video depositions. Once created, legal video must be easily searchable by both text and video files to quickly locate and isolate specific parts of testimony or other evidence.

Legal Video is More Valuable than Legal Transcripts

Attorneys can use a legal video to watch the witness, and watch behavior. Viewing a video will reveal nuances of behavior and demeanor, body language, tone of voice, and so much more. A transcript can only provide what is said, but a video reveals so much more than just words.

Legal videographers have the skills to use visual tools to enable the viewer to focus on emotion, for example. This is easily done with a close-up of facial expressions and emotional response. A video of what it is like for a suffering victim conveys more than words for example, when a skilled videographer uses close-ups of a face showing pain during difficulties of daily activities that most people take for granted.

The ability to study a courtroom video immediately after each court session during a trial can be critical for the legal team to study testimony for inconsistencies, and plan for the next day in court. The right software and technology enables rapid searchability, which means no wasted time using old-style fast-forwarding to find certain portions of testimony.

Careful analysis of courtroom video as well as video depositions enables attorneys to find and then show inconsistencies and inaccuracies in testimony. Seeing is far more believing than just referring to words in a transcript.

Who Should Record and Edit Legal Video?

It is possible to find some guidance about who can record video for legal use, such as for a deposition. For example, should a law firm use in-house staff to be the videographer of depositions? There is precedence that says this is not acceptable. Videos made by a secretary for a law firm were permitted at first, but then when it went to the appeals court it was denied because a law stated the making of the video must be done in a way that makes certain the video is completely accurate and trustworthy. (LA C.C.P. art. 1440)

There were two issues dealing with accuracy and trustworthiness in the making of the videos. This included the objectivity of the deposition itself, and the quality and consistency when comparing the court reporter and the videographer. This happened because of significant audio as well as video quality issues.

Lack of training and experience on the part of any non-professional videographer may impact the objectivity of a legal video, and will certainly appear amateur and damage rather than help a case in court.

It was determined that a videographer must be held to the same professional standards of a court reporter. This means that just knowing the Code of Civil Procedure is not enough to record a professional legal video. The videographer has to be independent and totally disinterested in the end result of the case. In order to provide accuracy, quality, as well as trustworthiness in the video recording, in addition to creating a professional quality video, independence is essential.

Preparation of Witnesses for Video Depositions is Critical

The use of video depositions in the discovery process can be very useful, but it can also be very damaging when a witness does not look good on video. An unkempt, stammering, nervous, witness who does not speak clearly or who has poor non-verbal skills is just not believable. If it is an expert witness, this can be destructive to a case.

Litigation attorneys must prepare, and even rehearse before the day of video deposition to find the issues and problems in the presentation before those are permanently on the record. A good video testimony, with a quality video presentation can be a turning point in a case. However, a poor presentation by the witness, and an equally poor video production can be just the opposite. There is no reason to give the adversary an opportunity to replay something negative, putting an otherwise solid case in jeopardy.

Fantastic persuasive performances on the witness stand will be the changing point often. So can a clip from a video deposition. Finally, the adversary attorney will play a dramatic event or negative issues. This will jeopardize an otherwise solid case.