Source of article 2's Company - Magnus Insights.

The topic of O.J. Simpson came up recently in a discussion I recently had about the world of trial consulting. The murder of O.J.’s former wife, and the subsequent trial, was one of the first televised celebrity mega trials. For better, or worse, almost everyone was aware of the accusations against O.J. in that case. The impact on the practice of law in America was tremendous. Millions of people followed every minute of the trial, heard every ruling by Judge Ito, and every argument by the prosecuting attorney, Marcia Clark (who subsequently wrote a book) and the defense lawyers (Johnny Cochran, whose law firm boomed after the case and Robert Kardashian, the patriarch of “the Kardashians”!) The wonderfully simplistic theme of “if the glove doesn’t fit, you must acquit” created expectations that such drama would be a part of all cases. It isn’t. Yet, many factors about these tragic murders, the subsequent chase, and the trial have become part of the legal Zeitgeist. Jurors’ expectations were forever changed. Some of these expectations made life, or rather, work, more challenging for attorneys litigating cases. But, one thing became easier in the litigation world, at least for us; more than ever before, the use of trial consultants for mock trials and jury selection came to be known among the general public. By the time of the O.J. trial, many lawyers understood and appreciated the use of trial consultants for these purposes. We still encounter attorneys who are unfamiliar with, or in experienced in, the use of trial consultants and mock trials. But, at the time of the O.J. case, to the general public, trial consultants were not well known. This created a challenge sometimes when recruiting mock jurors and conducting mock trials. Those being recruited for mock trials often responded with “Huh,what are you talking about?” And, the suspicions still remained when they arrived at a facility to report for mock trial duty. More than once, in small towns, a police officer or a Sheriff’s deputy showed up to make sure we were legitimate. Thanks, in part to O.J., we haven’t seen the cops at a mock trial in a long time!