Notes On Closing Arguments

As part of the summer job experience all of the interns in our office participated in a series of mock trial exercises over the summer—all of the interns except me, that is. I'm a slacker; what can I say? But the real deal is that I did it last year and since they were using all the same materials and fact pattern it just seemed a little silly to do it all again. At any rate, the mock trial culminated in the closing arguments which the interns gave in an actual courtroom before a jury comprised of the attorneys in the office. Everyone did a stellar job and I learned a lot by watching them. After each one, the jury critiqued the performance and gave each closer some helpful advice. The following are a few of the tips that were repeated frequently and that I wanted to remember for my own future closing argument preparation.

1. Should you start by thanking the jury? It seems people disagree about this. The jury might be impatient for you to get to the point.
2. Trilogies are effective. For example: “Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like you to consider three facts as you head into the deliberation room.” Then go through each fact—one, two, three. It makes your closing more focused, and easy to follow and remember.
3. Don't talk about “cops” to the jury. They're “police” or “law enforcement officers.” Juries aren't usually big on dissing the, um, cops.
4. Don't talk about a “story” unless you're referring too the load of crap the prosecution is selling. You're not telling a story, and your client isn't telling a story; you're both telling the truth. Present your theory as fact and show the jury how the evidence proves that your theory is factual.
5. Don't ask questions or leave conclusions open. Tell the jury what every fact and piece of evidence you mention means and the conclusions they should (logically and unavoidably) draw from them.
6. Make eye contact with every jury member. The more eye contact the better (generally speaking).
7. Emphasize the prosecutor's burden to prove every element of the charged offense beyond a reasonable doubt.
8. Don't say “I think” or “I proffer.” The evidence shows. Consider never using the first-person pronoun in closing.
9. Don't speak in the future tense in the closing about evidence the jury is going to hear. They've heard it; talk about what they heard and saw.
10. In your preparation, think about the unanswered questions from the trial and answer them for the jury in your client's favor. Don't leave holes for the prosecution to drive through on rebuttal. If there's something that's unclear or uncertain, have an explanation for it in closing.
11. Don't use legal jargon like “prejudicial” or “probative.” Use common, everyday language that the jury can relate to.
12. Use the important jury instructions for your case—read and interpret them for the jury so they will know exactly how they should apply those instructions.
13. Don't end by asking for a not-guilty verdict. The evidence demands a not-guilty verdict!

This is obviously not all you need to know about making a good closing argument, but I'll bet if you follow all of the above tips your closings will be much improved.

If you've done a few closings yourself: What tips would you add to this list?

Posted August 12, 2005 08:51 AM | 2L summer