Having a strong legal case is extremely important while in a court room. It is the determining factor whether or not you are proved innocent or guilty regardless of the truth. So many innocent people have lost their cases in court because they didn't have a strong enough case. In order to prevent that from happening to you, there are some things you should know and do before entering that court room.

1. What is Needed to Build a
Strong Case
All legal cases are won or lost based on the strength of the material
case facts presented by the representing attorneys. There are two
basic types of cases, with those being criminal prosecutions by the
state and civil tort prosecutions by a plaintiff legal counsel. It is
important to keep in mind that the different types of cases are
evaluated by different standards regarding the burden of proof,
and the strength of the case should be consistent with those
burdens.

2. In civil tort claims, the burden of proof is a “preponderance of the
evidence based on a totality of the circumstances” and all evidence
will essentially be “weighed” by the court. Even a single material
case fact can determine an outcome. In criminal cases, the burden
of proof is “beyond a reasonable doubt” because lives are being
interrupted when the state applies criminal charges. Regardless of
which class a cases will fall into, both presenting attorneys are
effectively prosecutors of sorts and strong cases are essentially
built in the same manner.
Assemble the Documented Evidence
Solid material case facts will all have documentation supporting
the assertions made in a case filing. Each particular assertion in a
pleading should have ample applicable documentation in as much
depth as possible. For criminal cases, this usually consists of
official police reports following an investigation and finding
potential witnesses supporting the claim that a crime was
committed. For civil torts, and in particular in personal injury
cases, this includes all documentation supporting the fact that an
accident occurred resulting in an injury to the plaintiff being
represented. This also applies to business disputes.
Documentation should also be included that supports the
assertion that the respondent had a reasonable duty of care to the
injured plaintiff, and that the respondent breached that duty
either directly by action or indirectly by failing to act as a
reasonably prudent individual would have acted.
Interview Your Witnesses
Personal witness testimony can be very valuable in any type of
legal proceeding. Cases that go to court usually do so because there
are competing versions of how the events of a case actually

3. transpired. Having your witnesses prepared for court is always
essential because information offered beyond the direct
questioning of the attorneys can result in surprise materially
applicable evidence that no attorney wants revealed if it will
weaken their case. The purpose of going to court is winning a
favorable verdict, and your witnesses should also be strong
supporting individual documentation, including a deposition
when allowed. Depositions can often reduce this possibility and
should be considered with all witnesses.
Eliminating Technicalities
Criminal prosecutors usually do not like to see technicalities used
in a criminal case. However, many times the whole defense rests
on a specific technicality. And, depending on the attitude of the
court, technicalities could even be suppressed as material case
fact, which can be unfortunate for a defendant if the suppressed
evidence is a defense assertion such as illegal search and seizure
by the arresting officer. In civil torts, technicalities are rarely
suppressed and often the technicality will control the entire
preponderance evaluation. The amount of evidence is not always
the most important aspect of any court case, and one technicality
that is entered into the record can have the heaviest impact on the
final outcome of the case.
Always remember, if the law is making your case weak, hammer
away at the facts. This includes technicalities as well because they
can make a major difference in the outcome of your case. And,
when the facts are making your case weak, hammer away at the
law. The law always applies, and many times the statute can
“outweigh” the facts when the burden of proof is being considered.
All strong cases will have strong elements of proof, regardless of
criminal or civil category.
Jay Sekulow is an Supreme Court advocate.