Articles
The Judge's Factfinding Rule (In Jury Trials)
A common misconception in jury trials is that judges only decide legal questions and juries decide factual questions. The reality is that before a jury sees or hears any evidence, the judge first decides what the jury will see and hear. And to make those determinations, the judge answers a host of factual questions. A more precise way to describe the factfinding roles of a judge and jury is as follows: Judges determine preliminary facts, and juries decide adjudicative facts. Knowing the...
Expert Witness Declarations: Admissible Opinion or Jargon Word Salad?
"I'll see you in court!" It's one of those lines that seems to make its way into any courtroom drama. But like a judge banging a gavel, some things make for good television but never actually happen in real life.
This is not to say lawyers are immune from having their share of meaningless colloquialisms. Take "battle of the experts." Attorneys toss around this phrase to describe certain cases or trials as basic coin flips. That upcoming trial about an allegedly defective...
Foundation and the Lay Witness: A Road Map to Admissibility
"Objection. Lacks foundation." It is among the more mundane objections heard during witness examinations. With lay witnesses, there can be a temptation for practitioners to give it little attention. Especially during depositions, where objections are supposed to be to the form of a question, there can be a tendency to ignore foundation issues altogether. But neglecting foundation with lay witnesses is dangerous. Testimony a jury should hear can be excluded...
David Sugden
Dave is a business trial lawyer who is an ABOTA member and has been recognized from 2020 - 2023 as one of the “Top 50 Super Lawyers in Orange County,” and previously recognized by California’s Daily Journal as one of “California’s 20 Top Attorneys Under 40”.
He has represented business entities both as a plaintiff and defendant throughout the country.
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