Chicago Medical Malpractice Lawyer Bob Kreisman Attends Annual AAJ (American Association of Justice) Convention

Chicago medical malpractice lawyer, Bob Kreisman, attended the American Association of Justice annual convention in Philadelphia from July 12 through July 16, 2008. The meetings were held in Philadelphia’s Center City, in the shadow of its famous city hall. The conference had seminars for every field of trial practice.
For those who were particularly interested in the upcoming elections, there were luncheons, town hall meetings and late night discussions. Senator Claire McCaskill of Missouri spoke with Kansas governor Kathleen Sebelius. Pennsylvania’s governor Ed Rendell and Senator Arlin Specter, also of Pennsylvania, drew large crowds to different events. Also, nominees for both the House of Representatives and Senate were on hand for speaking engagements. Minnesota’s democratic hopeful Al Franken spoke on Monday afternoon to a packed house with Governor Brian Schweitzer of Montana.

I found the few days of the meeting inspiring. While I was impressed with the speeches of the many talented, bright politicians, I was also energized by my own colleagues speaking about the things that I do in my trial practice day after day. Groups of us met between meetings to discuss our own cases and compare our approaches and style in presentation.

Putting on jury trials is a long process, but the lawyer leads the way, much the way a director styles a play or movie. Does the story of the case begin on day one, or as in the movie, “Saving Private Ryan”, does it start at the end, at the grave site of those who gave their lives to save this private (now an older man)? Strategy is vital. How will the story of my case play to the audience, the jury? How will I know what themes work best, what order and who are to be the stars? The very simple answer is focus groups; that is practice trying the case briefly in front of a sample audience to test themes, exhibits, the biases of audience for this case.

The takeaways were many. Those are the valued pieces of knowledge, ideas that come from five days of exchanging experiences.

Practicing Illinois medical malpractice law for over thirty years, Kreisman Law Offices offers services for the entire Cook County and surrounding areas, including Barrington, Englewood, Lemont, and River Grove.