Witness Preparation: A Practical Guide 4th Edition

This resource provides everything you need to know about choosing, interviewing, and preparing a witness. In addition to providing "tried and true" tips for witness preparation, it addresses significant developments in electronic discovery, the law of child witnesses and witnesses under a disability, and the law of conflicts of interest and privilege.

Topics covered include:-

• Interviewing prospective witnesses
• The decision to call a witness
• Preparation for examination-in-chief
• Preparation for cross-examination
• Evidence and trial procedure
• Preparation for examination for discovery
• Preparing experts
• Preparing child witnesses
• Preparing adults with mental disabilities
• Witness preparation and professional responsibility

A witness’s grasp of the facts, and his or her ability to convey evidence in a coherent, believable manner, has a profound effect on how a case will unfold. This edition of Witness Preparation: A Practical Guide has been updated to showcase the critical importance of properly and thoroughly preparing witnesses. It traces the process of witness preparation – from initial interviews to final trial preparation – in addition to closely identifying challenges associated with preparing particular categories of witnesses such as experts, children, and witnesses under a disability.

This latest edition also includes updates in respect of the law of privilege and reviews the most current research on memory tainting and witness suggestibility. The lawyer’s professional responsibility in respect of witness preparation features heavily, and specific chapters are devoted to preparation for discovery, examination in chief, and cross-examination.