Texans for Lawsuit Reform

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In the News

Court Trials: The Plot Drives the “Story”

JSTOR Daily, February 20, 2022

Trials create narratives that are “plot-driven.” When judges attempt to see them as “character-driven,” real people can be denied justice.

During the trial of Elizabeth Holmes for criminal fraud committed while CEO of Theranos, each piece of evidence and argument introduced served to move the trial along. Much like a straightforward Hollywood film, the trial was “plot-driven”, creating a compressed, linear narrative in order to further the case, and story, of each side.

According to former trial lawyer, and current law professor, Philip N. Meyer “[i]n the simplified parlance of Hollywood, movies are ‘plot-driven,’ while novels are ‘character-based” or ‘character-driven.’”

“To construct the plots of trial stories, litigators depict compelling characters and do so under constraints akin to those of commercial Hollywood movies,” Meyer writes. Skilled lawyers may try to convince the jury the accused, or even a witness, is innocent or guilty (or at least telling the truth) based on their character.

If the judges approach a case from viewing a case through a novel lens, they may be focused on the character of the people involved rather than the actions.

“There is a well-recognized psychological bias for jurors to regard events as caused by the innate character traits and psychological propensities of individual actors rather than by circumstances beyond human control,” Meyer explains.

Appellate cases risk being judged according to character, akin to novels, Meyers states. Appellate courts do not listen to witness testimony or admit new evidence, instead reviewing what has already been introduced at the prior trial.

If the judges approach and view a case through a “novel” lens, they may be focused on the character of the people involved rather than the actions. Meyers gives an example of Rusk v. State, a 1979 appeals case that led to the overturning of Salvatore Rusk’s conviction for rape.

The survivor of rape was described as a young, divorced woman with a young son who went “bar-hopping.” Through this description of the survivor, the appeals court made assumptions about the survivor’s character.

“The court’s reading of the record discounts the victim’s explanation of why she did not physically resist the defendant,” Meyer explained. According to LexisNexis, “the court held that the prosecution failed to show that defendant’s words or actions created a reasonable fear in the mind of the victim that if she resisted, he would have harmed her or used force to overcome the resistance.”

This was, however, not a work of fiction, film or novel. It was a trial for a crime, and “[the appeals court] read the transcript as if it was a novel and were free as readers to imagine the unseen world within.”  It was only after the overturning of the guilty verdict was itself appealed that Rusk’s sentence would be reinstated.

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Texans for Lawsuit Reform

22 hours ago

Texans for Lawsuit Reform

The Dallas County DA argued a judge’s impartiality could reasonably be questioned after she lowered a defendant’s bail considerably while his defense lawyer is one of her top campaign contributors, and then raised his bail after media reports about her rulings. Read and share: bit.ly/3lfQMzM ... See MoreSee Less

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Dallas judge under scrutiny for bail rulings recuses herself from cases

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Texans for Lawsuit Reform

2 days ago

Texans for Lawsuit Reform

TLR General Counsel Lee Parsley joined the U.S. Chamber’s Institute for Legal Reform’s podcast to discuss nuclear verdicts in the trucking industry and what legislators can do to ensure that excessive lawsuits don't shut down this vital industry. Listen and share: bit.ly/3wjgKJ9 #trucking #lawsuit #LegalNews #courts ... See MoreSee Less

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In this episode of Cause for Action, Nathan Morris, senior vice president, legal reform advocacy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform, is joined by Lee Parsley, the general couns...
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Texans for Lawsuit Reform

2 days ago

Texans for Lawsuit Reform

TLR General Counsel Lee Parsley joined the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform podcast to discuss nuclear verdicts in the trucking industry and what legislators can do to ensure that excessive lawsuits don't shut down this vital industry. Listen and share: bit.ly/3wjgKJ9 ... See MoreSee Less

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Nuclear Verdicts Create Litigation "Vortex" for Trucking Industry

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In this episode of Cause for Action, Nathan Morris, senior vice president, legal reform advocacy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform, is joined by Lee Parsley, the general couns...
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The Dallas County DA argued a judge’s impartiality could be questioned after she lowered a defendant’s bail while his defense lawyer is one of her top campaign contributors and then raised his bail after media reports about her rulings. Read & RT:

Dallas judge under scrutiny for bail rulings recuses herself from cases

Judge Chika Anyiam, of Criminal District Court 7, recused herself Monday from 10 felony cases against Julio Guerrero. A Dallas County judge who faced ...

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TLR is working to make the Texas legal system fair, efficient, and accessible for all. Learn more: #tortreform

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TLR's objective is to restore litigation to its traditional and appropriate role in our society. A lawsuit takes a heavy emotional and financial toll ...

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