Jurors Say the Darnedest Things

During a trial, lawyers can be so focused on the law and facts of a case that they may not recognize that jurors may be focused on different things entirely. A federal case out of Connecticut makes this point quite nicely. (SEC v. Westport Capital Markets, LLC, No. 3:17-cv-02064 (JAM)(D.C. Conn., 10/26/20). It is not a labor or employment case, but the conduct of a particular juror is so interesting I had to write about it.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a civil action against Westport Capital Markets, LLC, and its owner and chief executive officer, Christopher E. McClure, for failing to comply with their disclosure obligations under the Investment Advisers Act. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the SEC on three of its claims, and the jury at trial ruled for the SEC on the two remaining claims.

After the trial, one of the jurors wrote a glowing letter to one of the SEC’s attorney’s congratulating him on the victory and complimenting the presentation of his case at trial. In that letter, the juror also wrote this about the wife of defendant McClure:

Here’s an aside you might find interesting. During our deliberations we spoke of many things and McClure’s wife came up. She looked like she should have been at the Country Club playing Bridge. Her appearance came up and one of the jurors (who was a store manager at Macy’s in West Hfrd) asked if anyone noticed her shoes—I did! The manager told us they cost $3000 a pair. Ouch! You might pass that on to defense attorneys you know.

Ouch, indeed! That’s right, the jurors were commenting on the appearance and the three thousand dollar shoes worn by the defendant’s wife. I imagine that they were very nice shoes, but they clearly did not make the jury sympathetic to the defendant’s case. (And the juror’s letter was also not a reason to set aside the verdict, said the court).

This is why I take great care to give instructions to clients and witnesses on how to dress at trial. Before one trial in Atlanta federal court, I found myself at a Big and Tall store buying button-up shirts and ties for a client’s manager to wear because he did not own any. I have also told a client’s officer to leave her Louboutin shoes at home when she came to court. Appearances matter, especially at trial.

Coincidentally, I have also heard that juries tend to have a higher opinion of attorneys who dress well and look “prosperous,” the theory being that if the attorney is prosperous, she or he must be a good attorney. This may explain why there are always custom suit makers at many bar functions. And it means that maybe I need to find some $3,000 shoes to wear at my next trial….