Thus, a major battle is won when the attorney gets the jury to view the evidence in the case from his or her perspective. Every trial attorney should be acquainted with the elements of a persuasive opening. Persuasive opening statements present a clear theme of the case. A good theme provides the jurors with both the conceptual framework for the facts and the emotional undercurrent for the case. Themes should be short and concise.
Persuasive openings are well organized .
This is not as obvious as it sounds. The theme is reinforced by the content of the presentation and manner in which it is made. Consider the order in which key information or points are presented. Information is remembered best when encountered first or last, respectively. As a rule, information encountered in the middle of a presentation is remembered least well.