"The Jury" (1861) by John Morgan: Persuading a jury is one important quality of an expert witness. What else do you value?

“The Jury” (1861) by John Morgan: Persuading a jury is one important quality of an expert witness. What else do you value?

I know, as I write this, we are in late April, but I must say a few words about the amazing accomplishment of our magazine staff in creating what, by multiple measures, was a historic March issue of Arizona Attorney.

(Click the images above to see the full covers.)

What made the issue remarkable?

  1. It was a double issue, and you can see both issues here and here. That’s right, with no additional staff and little extra time, we created an entirely separate Expert Witness Supplement.
  2. It had stellar content. The supplement was not only filled with useful resources in the ad portions—display ads and listings of helpful resources. It also had a large number of relevant and well-written articles covering the wide range of expert-witness topics. I owe a huge debt to those authors who stepped up to serve readers.
  3. Our “main” issue did not take a back seat to the scene-stealing Supplement. That issue offered its own law practice-friendly articles, on faulty credit reports and insurance-defense, among others.
  4. Both issues were captured within what I think were award-winning designs. The March issue, for my money, is one of our most eye-catching ever. (A friend from Illinois wrote to say, “WOW! How could you not open that one?”) And the Supplement required a vast rethinking that would allow us to communicate which of the content were the articles at a glance, and to do so in a way that would not break our backs through work—as we had six feature articles to address. Kudos to our Art Director Karen Holub.
  5. The issues were incredibly helpful to readers, advertising-wise. I am a big fan of advertising, which I think can serve readers well (and not just by keeping us profitable!). The ads, especially in the supplement, were targeted to lawyers seeking guidance on expert-witness issues. Kudos to my advertising colleagues Lisa Bormaster and Mikyeila Cordero.
  6. The two issues were produced flawlessly. An incredible amount of research and coordination went into ensuring our costs were in line; our postal regulations were followed; and our product arrived in readers’ mailboxes in a safe and attractive way. Ultimately, we opted for a clear polybag that displayed both of our outward-facing covers. That allowed us to “box above our weight class” and to do so in a cost-effective way. Kudos to our Production Manager Michael Peel.

We are well into April, but I still marvel at our March accomplishment.

I know; you’re eager to see the polybag version. Here it is:

Not just a pretty face: Our March 2016 double issue provided great law-practice expert-witness content.
Not just a pretty face: Our March 2016 double issue provided great law-practice content.

Yes, we plan to issue a double issue next March, as well. If you would like to have your expert-focused article featured in that remarkable magazine, contact me now at arizona.attorney@azbar.org; I’m already developing ideas!

Meantime, I also share with you an interesting article on mistakes lawyers make when procuring expert witnesses.

And, given the topic of my Editor’s Letter in that Supplement, I suggest you read about the Tootsie Pop, which includes scientific studies to address the very question I posed!

The opening to my Editor's Letter in our March 2016 "Expert Witness Special Issue." Tootsie Pops and an owl in a mortarboard get me every time.

The opening to my Editor’s Letter in our March 2016 “Expert Witness Special Issue.” Tootsie Pops and an owl in a mortarboard get me every time.