Keeping Organized at Trial- Trial Organization Part I
I’m writing from a hotel in Wicomico County (on Maryland’s Eastern Shore), where I will begin a two-day jury trial tomorrow morning.
Here’s a great tip for staying organized during trials, especially the ones that keep you away from the office for several days. I always bring a set of portable office supplies. I keep them in a black nylon case that fits right inside my laptop bag. Inside I have:
•A travel-sized stapler
•A miniature three-hole punch for last-minute additions to my trial binder
•Small and medium Post-It notes for flagging transcripts and medical records, or labeling copies of exhibits.
•Paper clips
•Binder clips- one or two in each size
•A yellow highlighter
•A black Sharpie marker
•A red pen
•Extra pens- in my case blue Pilot P-500 Extra Fine point. I have messy handwriting, so the extra fine point helps it stay legible.
I leave the office supply case near where I keep my laptop bag at home, so all I have to do when I am getting organized for trial is open it up, check to make sure I don’t need to replenish anything, and throw it in the bag. Little details like these really help keep my trial presentation organized. I hate a messy, disorganized trial table- I find it very distracting. Having a set of portable office supplies helps me to keep everything in its place in my trial binder and my exhibit folders.
The jury sees everything, so having a clean trial table and a meticulously organized trial binder (and the supplies I need to keep them that way) helps create the right impression right from the start.
