[blindlaw] Strategies for examining and cross-examining witnesses more expeditiously

[Ross A. Doerr]

Hi Rahul:
If you have a witness who is refusing to cooperate you have a genuine
problem.
I usually faced this problem in terms of a wittness with a disability, and
the resolution usually revolved around a reasonable accommodation.
This does not sounds like it is the situation you are facing.
I am known for being too accommodating for people. But in this case I would
suggest that this witness gets one last chance to be reasonable. IF she
refuses, ask for sanctions from the court equaling the time and expenses she
has cost you.
Then I would move that her testimony, written as well as verbal, be stricken
from the record.
If, as I suspect, someone is going to insist that she is an essential
witness, then that party needs to provide some garuntee to the court, that
her past year of antics will not happen again.
I rarely use this approach because it sens a message of being a control
freak in litigation. But in this case it seems as if a witness has seized
the proceedings. 
Take the ball away from her altogether.
The other methods you suggest may work, but after a year's delay rooted in
one witness, you may be creating a whole ne3w level of complexity.
Can you make do with this witness?
Ross



-----Original Message-----
From: blindlaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Rahul Bajaj
via blindlaw
Sent: Sunday, February 1, 2015 9:08 AM
To: blindlaw at nfbnet.org
Subject: [blindlaw] Strategies for examining and cross-examining witnesses
more expeditiously

Hi All,

I'd be very grateful if you could share any techniques that you are aware of
for examining and cross-examining witnesses more expeditiously. We're
grappling with a case where we have not been able to conduct the
cross-examination of a witness for almost a year due to her lackadaisical
approach and refusal to cooperate. We're looking for any strategies that we
could adopt, with the approval of the court, for cross-examining other
witnesses simultaneously to allow the case to move forward. We've not been
able to find any precedents endorsing the idea of parallel cross-examination
anywhere in the world, so we're trying to figure out other strategies that
would help us in breaking this deadlock. I came across the concept of
witness conferencing, which is very popular in commercial arbitration, and
something known as hot-tubbing in Australia which allows the statements of
multiple witnesses to be recorded simultaneously and thereby ensures the
expeditious resolution of disputes. Are there any other strategies, in any
common law or civil law jurisdictions, for examining and cross-examining
witnesses more expeditiously that I should be looking at?

Best,
Rahul

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