Gold In, Gold Out: Why Mock Trial Presentation Quality Matters

Every now and then, I am in a mock trial, and at the end of the presentation, a handful of jurors will start applauding. It will be a spontaneous moment when those jurors forget they are participating in a research exercise and are simply reacting to a compelling advocate.

This happened to me a few weeks ago after a particularly strong plaintiff presentation. The attorney was well prepared, spoke confidently without relying on a script, and delivered his message with conviction. The jurors were certainly reacting to what he said, but just as importantly, they were responding to how he said it.

Get to the Goal of Mock Trials

Moments like these highlight an important truth about mock trial research: presentation quality makes a difference. Not simply because it keeps jurors engaged, but because it helps create a research environment that closely reflects what jurors are likely to experience at trial and therefore encourages feedback that is more reliable, actionable, and predictive.