Projector and Large Screen or Many Small Screens??

How will you display your information to the jury or audience?  Not that many years ago, the only option for large displays was to use large, incredibly heavy CRT monitors.  About 15 years ago, viable projector solutions came to the rescue, despite the fact that they were more than a little pricey, and borderline in their abilities.

The flat screen or LCD monitor arrived on the scene in the last decade or so, resulting in a short-lived diversion off course.  We went off course partially because of the high-tech look that resulted from individual small monitors for each juror or 1 monitor located between each pair of jurors.  The courtroom looked clean and trendy, but one of the goals of each litigator became alot tougher to achieve with this arrangement.  That goal is to control the focus and "be the focus" of each juror's attention.  It soon became apparent that the jurors were getting their information from a diplay less than 2 feet from their face, while the lonely attorney was waving their arms 20 feet away, often to no avail.

Once we shifted away from small monitors very close to the jurors, the reasonable alternative had also been fully developed.  Powerful quiet projectors capable of producing high resolution (xga or better) images on screens that were also technologically advanced had arrived on the scene.  We could now install less than 75 pounds of equipment in a courtroom in relatively short order, allowing even the smaller or single practitioner firms to get their winning case to juries without sweating the cost.

Do smaller monitors have a place in today's courtroom?  Absolutely, yes!  The small monitors allow for a completely paperless presentation, where the judge, witness, and both parties are able to view the evidence locally on smaller monitors.  If the detail of the arguments does not become excessive, admissability may be argued over and the evidence could either be admitted or denied without requiring the jury to leave the room or papers to be shuffled back and forth. 

So what do we recommend?  If your goal is to clearly present the evidence while allowing the litigator to control the jury's focus, give us a call and request a single projector/screen array.  Your team will get their point across while saving time (which always wins points with the court).  If your case is information intensive, there might be a point where leaning towards the paperless trial might benefit you and your client.  We've worked on and in numerous trials, so we should be able to ask the questions that will help you quickly arrive at the most beneficial solution for your situation.

Next on the docket—Can your presentation get too "slick"?