some pictorial help. Providing the doc- tor with a photograph of the patient at his pre-deposition or pre-trial meeting is a good way to avoid some potential em- barrassment for the doctor and for your client. Refreshing the doctor’s recollec- tion on the physical appearance of his patient also seems to magically bolster the doctor’s testimony and confidence. When your client is sitting in your of- fice with their arm in a cast as the result of the recent fall or automobile collision, you can take their picture right then and there.
If the client’s vehicle has not yet
been repaired and they have driven it to your office (and this has happened to me on a number of occasions), walk outside and take photographs of your client’s car. Not just the bent bumper, but also the damage to the underbody, damage inside the trunk and passenger compartments. Demonstrative evidence does not get any cheaper than this. If photographs of the automobile are not immediately available, try to enlist the assistance of your client by asking that they make a special trip to the repair fa- cility or the salvage yard to take a series of photographs of their vehicle (and the defendant’s vehicle if it is still there).
If
the client cannot get pictures, a family member or friend is often willing to vol- unteer. I ask the clients to bring the film back to my office for developing. I do not want to risk losing these photographs to the Pony Express or a commercial film processor that sends the negatives off pre- mises. I take the film to a vendor that develops on-site. If your case involves an automobile col- lision, the lawyer must visit the scene and the sooner the better.
In rural areas in
particular, there are many landscape and roadway features which are not set forth in the police report, but which may have a great bearing on the liability issues in the case. Features such as a dip in the road, a slight curve, a large bush or tree obscuring a driveway entrance or an im- portant road sign or a cautionary speed limit sign. Occasionally, you will find the speed limit set forth in the police report is in- correct. Photographs of these important roadway features need to be taken promptly after the case comes into your office (or follow Irwin’s suggestion and send to SHA for the video). You should consider the medical con- dition of your client and whether there are any offending objects, medical appa- ratus or structures which can be photographed. You should consider gov- ernmental agency reports including police
Spring 2001 Trial Reporter 9
reports. You should consider whether you will need to obtain the schematic diagram (to scale or not to scale). In the case of special relationship or death cases, you should be thinking about photographs of the deceased, cards to loved ones, military and community awards, motion pictures or recordings. Many of these items are in the possession of your client who might discard them unless you explain how these items might be used as demonstrative evidence. In fall down cases, it is critical to ob- tain an accurate portrayal of the scene of the fall. Prior to meeting with the client on a fall down case, request that the cli- ent make some effort to secure a photograph of the scene of the fall so that it will be available during your first meet- ing. Ask the client to bring the shoes they were wearing at the time of the fall to the initial meeting (in a separate bag, of course). Your expert will want to see the shoes and the defense will demand the shoes be produced in discovery. Your cli- ent should not be wearing the shoes out while waiting for the case to resolve. When you get that telephone call from a distraught spouse or relative telling you that their loved one has been seriously injured and expected to be hospitalized for some time, consider having the spouse
or other family member go to the hospi- tal and discreetly take a series of photographs depicting the client in the hospital bed. Make sure the pictures in- clude the machines, the tubes, the electrical wires and monitors strapped or stuck into the client. Photograph the client’s face, and all other obvious inju- ries. I tell the family to be sensitive in their selection of camera angles, consid- ering that the pictures may be shown to strangers in the future.
There may be
some parts of the body that should not be photographed in the interest of privacy and decorum. Just remember, when you let your clients make the call on privacy and decorum do not be surprised by the occasional risqué (and unusable) photo- graph. Nude beaches and scant clothing is a way of life for some. If there is a story in the newspaper about a collision, there is a good chance that the newspaper also had a photographer on the scene. Even if the photographs were not published, the newspaper photographers will sometimes make the photographs avail- able or sell you copies. This sometimes requires a little digging and coaxing of the photographer, but you will find pay dirt more often than not.
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