Why use jury selection software?

Feb 24, 2021

Disclaimer

The articles on this site are for information only and in some cases only represents the opinion of the author. The information does not constitute legal advice and should not be used as a substitute for obtaining legal advice from an attorney.


Selecting a quality jury is key to winning your case. If you are still using sticky notes to organize your notes for jury selection, you may want to read this post about how jury selection software can enhance your jury selection process.


Collaborative note taking

Jury selection is a fast paced activity. You are asking questions, taking notes, and reading body language all at the same time. Collaborative jury selection software, like Jurybox, allows you to have multiple people taking juror notes at the same time. That means you can focus your attention on the subtleties of juror body language, while an assistant or co-counsel can take detailed notes. Those notes can be referenced by you in real time. No need to pass papers or whisper. It's all there as soon as you enter it in the system.


Detailed juror info

Taking notes on stickies is limited to 15-20 words. Virtual sticky notes, like those in Jurybox, have no limit, allowing you to have a much more thorough record of the juror details.


In addition to notes, visual indicators like, thumbs up or down, let you quickly give an impression about a juror. So, at a glance you can remember how you feel about a juror. In addition, the ability to highlight specific info really helps to make key info pop.


Questionnaire details at your finger tips

Most jury trials include a juror questionnaire that is given out and collected. Typically, this info would come as a stack of papers that you would have to rifle through along with your sticky notes. This is very tedious and impractical given the intense nature of jury selection. With software like Jurybox, you can enter that data into the system before the trial and then promote a juror to the box with the questionnaire details included, thereby merging your questionnaire info with your sticky notes. That way, all the info you track about a juror is together in one juror card.


No more mistakes in tracking challenges

With so much going on during jury selection, it's difficult to keep track of the number of jurors that have been dismissed in each category. If a mistake is made in counting the number of peremptory challenges for the prosecution or defense, it could really mess up your dismissal strategy. Solutions like Jurybox track these challenges automatically so mistakes like that don't happen.


Summary

There are many reasons why more and more attorneys are relying on jury selection software to help them select a quality jury. Collaboration, enhanced note taking, and mistake proofing are just a few. If you are still skeptical, give Jurybox a try. The first three days are free, no credit card required!