Mock Trial for FEMA Trailer Cases?
Having lost the real trial, the Sun-Herald reports that the plaintiff lawyers in the FEMA trailer litigation now want the court to order two non-binding mock trials:
Plaintiffs' attorneys asked a judge to order two nonbinding "summary jury trials" for the litigation after a federal jury on Sept. 24 rejected a New Orleans family's claims that elevated levels of formaldehyde in their FEMA trailer jeopardized their health.
A plaintiffs' lawyer says summary jury trials can promote a mass settlement, but attorneys for trailer manufacturer Keystone RV Company are opposed to the proposal. U.S. District Judge Kurt Engelhardt didn't immediately rule on the request.
Summary jury trials typically last less than a day and cost much less than real trials.
It's almost like having already lost the Super Bowl, the losing team wants Vegas to put a point spread on the game.
I wonder if the plaintiffs proposed the summary jury trials before the real trial? I wonder if plaintiffs conducted their own one day focus group studies or mock trials and like their chances at winning a one day summary trial? I wonder if anyone is raising the fact that every jury consultant you ask will tell you that one day focus group type proceedings are not predictive of the actual outcome at trial?
What I don't wonder is whether the defendants will agree to the proposal. I think we know the answer to that one. The plaintiffs are probably going to have to either settle for peanuts or win a real trial.
I thought summary jury trials were binding, unlike mock trials, which do not involve the court or the other side in the case.