Laura Eschleman and Molly McCall presented Theater of the Courtroom: Overcoming Obstacles at Trial in a Pandemic workshop at DRI’s Annual Meeting in Boston on October 14, 2021.

Laura Eschleman and Molly McCall presented the Theater of the Courtroom workshop at DRI’s 2021 Annual Meeting on October 14, 2021.  They spoke to other DRI members about trying cases in the Covid-era, with socially distanced, masked jurors who wish they had never been summoned.  Laura and Molly asked attendees to examine preconceived notions at jury selection and pointed out a marked shift in attitudes that defy old stereotypes.  The workshop provided attendees with an opportunity to consider COVID-19’s impact on an already growing demand for social justice (i.e. the Black Lives Matter and “me too” movements) and what that means for civil defendants when they are perceived by juries as being in positions of power.