Posted by Ken Adams on Fri, Sep 03, 2010
When video first burst onto the consumer scene, the video format wars were limited to VHS vs. Beta. Fast forward a few decades and you’ll find an alphabet soup of video formats including: MPEG, Flash, H.264, AVI, MOV, QT, MKV, and more. While dozens of video formats exist, many of which deliver crystal clear, high definition images, when it comes to legal video, you are limited to the formats compatible with the trial presentation software that you are using.
The legal market has been slow to embrace the new and improved video formats such as H.264. Instead, nearly every
trial presentation software product depends on the MPEG-1 format. Because compatibility is important for all users of the trial presentation software, support for newer formats has not been implemented. After all, if the legal video cannot be viewed by some parties involved in the case, it is not serving its purpose.
For now, MPEG-1 is the video format of choice for legal video. It is a universal format with widespread compatibility. However, it does have its pros and cons.
The advantages of MPEG-1 are:
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Compatibility: This is a universal video format supported by all of the major trial presentation software products including Sanction, Trial Director, and Visionary.
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Compression: The MPEG-1 format is a compressed video format. Up to two hours of legal video can fit on a CD
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Conversion: Most video editing packages can easily convert raw video formats to the MPEG-1 format. For example, if you have a video camera that records video onto Digital8 or another tape-based format, the video can be imported from the camera and converted to the MPEG-1 format.
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Editing: Once you’ve converted your footage to MPEG-1, software video editing tools make it easy to work with the footage.
The
disadvantages of MPEG-1 are:
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Image quality: Video has grown up tremendously since MPEG-1 was first introduced. With today’s televisions and Internet video sites now featuring stunning, high definition video, the lesser quality of MPEG-1is noticeable and detracts from the message.
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Sound editing: The audio track is mixed with the video track which makes sound editing a problem. Since the two tracks are mixed audio and video cannot be edited separately, making it difficult to enhance legal videos with poor audio qualities such as background noise or low volume.
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Video CD/DVD compatibility issues: While most modern CD/DVD drives can handled MPEG-1 discs, older CD and DVD players may not be compatible with the MPEG-1 format.
Despite the poor video quality, difficulty in editing sound, and potential for hardware incompatibility, if you are working with legal video in conjunction with legal trial presentation software, you may have no other choice but to convert your video to the MPEG-1 format. If you are starting with raw footage and sound is an issue, you may be able to address the sound issues before converting the footage to the MPEG-1 format. On the other hand, if your source material originates as an MPEG-1 file, the audio is already mixed with the video, making isolation nearly impossible.
With so many video formats,
choosing a format for your legal videos is relatively easy due to the industry’s lack of progress in this area. The compatible choice is MPEG-1.
Posted by Ken Adams on Tue, Apr 13, 2010
Whether your case is one of the few that will find itself in the courtroom or settled outside of court, litigation presentation software puts all of the documents, transcripts, photos, and videos at your fingertips. Sure, you could store these crucial files on your computer and call them up as needed, but without a solid system in place, you'll waste precious time trying to find what you need. With litigation presentation software installed on your computer,
you'll be able to call up testimony, documents, and videos quickly and efficiently.
Dozens of litigation presentation programs are available. One of the best is Visionary, offered by Visionary Legal Technologies. This product was designed by litigators for litigators. In other words, the designers know what's important to legal professionals because they have spent their fair share of time presenting cases.
Visionary allows you to store, organize, and call up documents quickly. The standard version of Visionary, which also happens to be free, is a discovery management tool as well as a presentation tool wrapped into one solution. It contains a customizable database with 250 user-defined fields as well as tools for searching, finding, and presenting "on the fly." The professional version, which costs around $600, offers many additional features including those found in the free version as well as hierarchal "issue builders," electronic Bates stamps, live chat support, a high capacity (support for over one million documents per case), optical character recognition for finding and identifying crucial information, export options (HTML and PowerPoint), cut and paste tools, and more.
You can even use the
"objection editor" to edit objections and portions of a transcript that should not be presented. You can do this for text as well as video objections.
Other neat tools include the "Facts Database" and the "Facts Digest Wizard." Use these tools to organize and analyze facts. The graphical display helps you to determine which facts help, and which facts hurt, your case. Facts can be associated with specific sections of a transcript. When viewing the transcript, the Facts window displays facts related to events, issues, and people associated with that portion of the testimony. Because the facts are listed in a database, you can easily filter and sort them as well as create queries and reports.
Clearly, Visionary offers a host of useful features. By organizing your case documents and taking advantage of the discovery management, databases, and presentation tools offered in the software, you will have the information that you need at any given time. Finding data is a snap with the OCR search tool. Simply enter a keyword or phrase and call up all related documents.
Not only will you be more efficient in hearings, mediation, meetings, depositions, and the courtroom, you will also appear more organized, knowledgeable, and credible.Lawyers have long been admired for their ability to present information quickly. Now, you have a tool available that delivers the information that you need - including videos, transcripts, and exhibits - with just a few keystrokes. With a solid litigation presentation software solution in place, you'll spend less time fumbling in search of supporting documents and more time presenting your arguments.
Are you using Visionary in your practice? Have you tried the free version or have you opted for the full featured professional version? What challenges has the software solved for you? We'd love to hear your thoughts!
Posted by Chris MacNaughton on Mon, Jan 11, 2010
Presentation software is coming of age in the courtroom. However, are you investing the time to create compelling technological presentations in the mediation room? With only about two to three percent of all cases going to trial, using presentation technology during mediation makes sense. While you may be sitting across a conference table instead of appearing before a judge and a jury, a computerized presentation delivers numerous benefits in mediation.
Benefits of Presentation Technology
Let's start with the numbers. Within 72 hours after hearing an oral presentation, research reveals that only 10 percent is remembered. A visual presentation improves retention to about 20 percent. Combined, an audio/visual presentation improves memory retention up to 65 percent. In mediation, you don't have to convince a jury, but you do need to present your case. Ensure that your information is remembered by using presentation technology instead of delivering a speech.
For example, instead of discussing a medical procedure, use your presentation software to illustrate how the procedure is performed, enhancing it with a voiceover and onscreen bullet points. The other parties in the room will be far more likely to understand the procedure - and more importantly, they will be more likely to remember what was discussed a few days later.
Another advantage is that once you've created your presentation, it is packaged and ready to go. Instead of telling everyone to flip to a page in a report or look at an exhibit, a simple click of a button displays the exact document or exhibit that you are referencing. No more awkward fumbling or delays.
Using Presentation Technology
Numerous presentation technologies are available ranging from Microsoft PowerPoint to technologies specifically created for the legal profession. No matter which technology you select, mastering it before you attempt a presentation in mediation or the courtroom is crucial. Not only must you master the software and basic design concepts, you must also master setting up the equipment and controlling the presentation in a live environment.
Start by planning your presentation, just as you would if you were giving oral arguments. Once you have an outline, start building the presentation in the software. If your law firm has a standard template for these purposes use it. For example, your law firm's logo and color scheme may already be built into the template, making for a professional-looking background and consistency throughout the firm. If you're starting from scratch, be conservative with colors, fonts, backgrounds, graphics, sound effects, and animations. You want your message to come across, not the software's bells and whistles.
Common Presentation Mistakes
Common mistakes to avoid include:
• Cramming too much text onto a single screen
• Relying too heavily on visuals and forgetting to combine spoken elements. Remember that oral remarks or visuals alone have dramatically lower retention rates than when combined.
• Selecting difficult-to-read fonts or font sizes that are simply too small. Choose a san serif style font such as Helvetica or Arial.
• Choosing a busy background. Not only do patterned backgrounds add clutter to the screen, they also make it more difficult to read the text. Choose a solid, unobtrusive colored background or a subtle gradient.
If you're not technically savvy or if you are uninterested in the actual creation of the presentation, consider getting professional design help. If your law firm has a graphic designer on staff, ask for help or hire a designer.
Practice, Practice, Practice
Finally, practice! Not only must you practice delivering the actual presentation, you must also learn how to set up the equipment and use it. Practice setting up and using equipment as well as delivering your arguments. Practice advancing the slides manually, launching videos, pausing the presentation, and displaying evidence.
When properly applied, presentation technology can be extremely effective in mediations. Viewers are more likely to remember your message after viewing an audio/visual presentation than having heard it without visuals. Make an impression by incorporating presentation technology into the mediation room.