Imagine your healthcare organization has an outstanding patient satisfaction rating, but a trial attorney attempts to twist that fact into something that leaves a negative impression with the jury. How would you want your defense team to respond in that moment?
We respond by understanding that winning the objection is only half the battle. In trial, the jury sees and considers everything — from the confidence of the witness to the shoe choice by the lawyer. So, when a lawyer objects (and approaches the bench for that attorney-only conversation with the judge) a good lawyer must think not only about winning the objection, but also about the impression left with the jury by making the objection in the first place.
Recently, we had a case where the plaintiff’s attorney attempted to cross-examine our client physician with a negative review (by another patient) that had been posted on a website. Although this line of questioning was objectionable on multiple grounds, we chose not to object; our client was very capable of explaining the review, and we were aware that an objection would suggest to the jury that our client had something to hide. If we had objected and “won”, the impression left with the jury would still have been negative. The jury would have heard that there is a website where patients have reviewed this physician’s performance, and that we (by objecting) wanted to prevent them from hearing about how other patients reviewed his care.
To avoid leaving the jury with this unfavorable impression, we chose to allow the questioning and then take advantage of the door that had been “opened.” We admitted testimony that our client’s overall rating on that website was 4.9 out of 5 stars — a near-perfect patient satisfaction score! The plaintiff’s attorney, who opened the door in the first place, saw it slam shut in his face.
At Waranch and Brown, we understand that it is important to keep the bigger picture in mind. Choose your battles — and your objections — wisely. If you have a question about a case or trial strategy, contact our experienced attorneys to discuss how we can help.