First Court is growing rapidly, and we now have happy mediation clients in 41 states and the District of Columbia enjoying, average savings of 23 hours and 17% in litigation expenses per case. We want to celebrate that growth, welcome our new additions, and make sure that you are familiar with the whole team that is serving you.
Meet our Newest Mediators
Mar 13, 2019 1:54:23 PM / by Joe Liffrig posted in Settle, 1 Hour Mediation, ADR, Online Dispute Resolution
Win Jury Selection, Win at Trial - Juror Background Research by First Court
Mar 11, 2019 4:59:59 PM / by Joe Liffrig posted in Voir Dire, Jury Research, Focus Group, innovation, jury trial, voir dire rehearsal, jury selection, online jury research
Many trials are won or lost in voir dire, yet it's often cited as the least predictable part of litigation. We want to reduce that risk and help clients win at this critical stage, so we developed a powerful way for you to learn the characteristics of your good and bad jurors, practice your questions with real laypeople in advance, and enter public voir dire knowing every possible bit of information about the people in your jury pool.
Evaluate Potential Experts... Before Hiring Them
Feb 6, 2019 4:55:00 PM / by Joe Liffrig posted in Jury Research, Witness, Experts, online jury research
How often do you hire an expert knowing most of what they will say, but not how effective it will be in helping you win at trial? If you go into trial without knowing how effective your expert witness is at persuading jurors, you risk not only wasting the money spent on their fees, but also run the much greater risk of getting surprised by an adverse decision at trial.
How Jurors Value Less-Visible Injuries
Jan 24, 2019 1:41:40 PM / by Joe Liffrig posted in Jury Research, Focus Group, Witness, Testimony, Emotion, innovation, jury trial, jury selection
We recently completed a private jury trial in a major motor vehicle collision, and learned some fascinating lessons about how jurors value less visible injuries such as cognitive impairment.
Powerful, Cost-effective Jury Research - Introducing Three Hour Trial by First Court
Dec 14, 2018 9:54:22 AM / by Joe Liffrig posted in Jurors, Jury Research, Focus Group, innovation, jury trial, jury selection, three hour trial, online jury research
We have helped thousands of clients win better outcomes in their lawsuits using our Private Jury Trial service over the last three decades. Woven into that success, we have heard two needs from our clients that we cannot meet with an all-day, in-person trial: 1) It's not cost effective for smaller cases, and 2) Because of the cost and time commitment, it's likely they can only do it once in a given case... even as the case evolves and new questions arise.
What could you accomplish with 10 free hours?
Dec 13, 2018 10:54:58 AM / by Joe Liffrig posted in Settle, 1 Hour Mediation, ADR, Settlement Case Studies, Settlement, Online Dispute Resolution
Settling a six figure personal injury case in an hour probably seems impossible to those in the legal profession who have not yet enjoyed the benefits of First Court's 1 Hour Mediation.
Last call for 2018 Settlements
Dec 7, 2018 4:40:12 PM / by Joe Liffrig posted in Settle, 1 Hour Mediation, Settlement, Case Submission, Online Dispute Resolution
Everyone involved in a lawsuit has some incentive to settle before the end of the year. Whether it's holiday closure (and cash) for injured parties, cash flow and tax benefits for law firms, or cleaning up the books for insurance carriers - our clients of every type tell us this time of year is a good inflection point to try to resolve open cases.
How to choose compelling experts
Nov 29, 2018 12:20:36 PM / by Joe Liffrig posted in Jurors, Jury Research, Witness, Testimony, Experts
You pay a premium for expert testimony. Why? To persuade jurors. But do you have any way to know if you are investing in the right expert(s)? There is no single rule to pick the best experts for each case, but we have had the chance to measure the effectiveness of thousands of experts over the years, and have identified a handful of key traits we see in expert witnesses that achieve their desired effect – persuading jurors.
How Jurors Work: Emotions Lead the Law
Oct 17, 2018 10:49:27 AM / by Mike Liffrig posted in Jurors, Jury Research, Emotion, Law
Consider this fact pattern and outcome from a case we recently worked on: Plaintiff rear-ends trailer pulling a large load of logs. I repeat: Plaintiff rear-ends defendant. But the jurors assign most of the blame to the defendant… who was rear-ended.
Juror's Feedback:How Good People Go Ugly When Testifying
Sep 17, 2018 12:04:27 PM / by Joe Liffrig posted in Advocacy, Prep4Dep, Witness, Deposition, Testimony
I imagine you have been in this situation: Your key witness is a good man. You know he is honest. In all your discussions he is down-to-earth. Likeable. Not a whiff of arrogance.