deeply human stories of the witnesses and parties . Katherine has successfully harvested human damages stories for four decades and this book advises lawyers on how they can acquire those important skills .
Compelling proof of human suffering is best conveyed through the heartfelt stories of those who are experiencing the losses . As demonstrated in the 29 parables that Jesus used to convey His messages in the Holy Bible , stories are best told through people rather than by describing circumstances . However , before attorneys can create a compelling story of the human damages experienced by a client , we must train our witnesses and clients to become their own best storytellers . Experts in witness preparation seek to assist witnesses to get in touch with their own deepest feelings about the human damages they are experiencing and to convey those through multiple personal stories of anguish .
Trial consultants and attorneys assess witnesses to determine their weaknesses , fears , and difficulties with testifying . Trial lawyers must be able to correctly identify the sources of a witness ’ s difficulties and challenges to convert the witness into a compelling and relatable storyteller . Attorneys must also learn to converse with the witness in such a way as to open their minds and hearts to the attorney to permit the harvesting of the witness ’ s stories about how the loss has affected them and how the pain , anguish , and fear cripple them daily . From such heartfelt stories , the plaintiff ’ s trial story on human damages will reveal itself if the attorney will stay out of the way and allow it .
For more than four decades , many of America ’ s finest trial lawyers , when confronted with these witness challenges , have turned to Katherine James , our profession ’ s most talented and reliable witness whisperer , for her incomparable assistance .
Those of us who labor in the vineyards of litigation , harvest stories of human damages , and regularly prepare difficult or troubled witnesses for testimony are the grateful beneficiaries of Katherine James ’ new book , Harvesting Witnesses ’ Stories , an instant classic which every trial lawyer should have close at hand when preparing witnesses or planning proof of human damages .
Trial consultant Katherine James has worked with witnesses , trial lawyers , and trial consultants for more than 40 years , during which she has continued to hone her considerable skills as a premier consultant in witness preparation , witness problem-solving , and , most importantly , as the witness whisperer who trains witnesses to get in touch with their own feelings and tell their own stories .
Katherine has confronted a plethora of witness problems as she consulted with thousands of witnesses on more than 2,000 cases and has shared her skills with more than 40,000 lawyers in conventions , colleges and workshops . The list of 54 trial attorneys and consultants who wrote endorsements for Harvesting Witnesses ’ Stories is a veritable Who ’ s Who of leading trial lawyers and consultants who speak from their experience of working with Katherine .
Harvesting Witnesses ’ Stories is brilliantly organized for use by busy trial lawyers and trial consultants . The book may be read from cover to cover as an entertaining and educational treatise which allows the reader to fully appreciate the context of the valuable advice . It will become an instant classic reference book for those seeking to resolve a particular witness problem . Lawyers who experience difficulty reaching the depths of a witness ’ s feelings to convey human damages to a decision-maker will also want to keep this book readily available as a reference . I suggest that each reader should at least scan the book cover to cover to gain appreciation of the depth of knowledge and advice that is available to the reader . The author divides the book into two parts : Tales and Tools And Techniques .
Tales
Tales consists of 27 chapters discussing actual cases wherein Katherine and her attorney-client interact with a challenged witness to identify and solve the communications problem and assist the witness in understanding the process of testifying to improve their role in that process . Katherine then encourages the witness to speak in free form from their heart about their human damages until they achieve what Katherine refers to as human damages poetry : “ They are just speaking beautifully from their hearts about the way things were , what happened , the way things are now and their hopes and fears about the future .”
In reviewing the Tales section , trial lawyers will recognize most of the difficult witnesses from their own experiences : the witness who talks too much , the witness who is truly terrified , the witness the jury is going to hate , the witness who can ’ t put feelings into words , the child witness , or the witness who is part of a mass tort or a class action .
One of the great values of this tutorial is to observe Katherine ’ s methodology in solving the witness problem and harvesting the human damages story . In each chapter of witness preparation , Katherine inserts boxes in the margins that refer the reader to the Tools and Techniques used in this Tale . Also encapsulated in the margins of the Tales are nuggets of wisdom that emphasize the essence of the process , often in forensic psychological terms . The design and layout of the book are highly conducive to use as a reference book .