Most firms that represent injured patients in medical malpractice cases will use focus groups in preparing for trial. A focus group is simply a group of people, who theoretically match what a jury would look like in the case. The focus group participants are selected in various ways, from posting notices in places like the YMCA to putting ads on Craigslist. Most attorneys try to end up with a balanced group in terms of political leanings, age, and gender.
They are then invited to a focus group session that might last from three to five hours, and paid a fee ranging form $75 to $125. Many focus group sessions take place in the evening or on a Saturday, so those who are work during the day are not excluded. Usually, the firm tries to avoid having the participants know which side the firm represents. The group’s size will usually range from six to twelve members.
What is the purpose of a focus group? Someone once said that “lawyers are from Mars and jurors are from Venus.” Lawyers are trained to think a certain way and to assess the facts of their case in a logical fashion. As any trial attorney will tell you, however, jurors do not think like lawyers and are influenced in their decision-making by factors a lawyer might not even know exists in the case. The focus group is a chance for the lawyer to present selected facts about the case and find out how “ordinary” people react. Some lawyers treat it like a “mock jury,” having different people present the case from both the plaintiffs’ and defendant’s perspective, and finding out how the jurors rule on the issues.
More commonly, selected facts about the case are presented to the focus group, and then comments are asked for. Reactions might be put down on paper, and then the facts are discussed and the participants can then change their initial conclusions based on that discussion. In some focus groups, there may be only one or two key issues on which the lawyers want to get input. For example, in a medical negligence case in which there is finger-pointing between a doctor and another medical provider, the lawyers may want to see how this issue is perceived under different scenarios. The discussion by the participants is more important than their “decisions,” because the lawyers are looking for ways to improve their presentation to obtain maximum impact.
There are jury consultants who make their living by flying around the county arranging focus groups in large cases. The costs can be quite high. Others may offer a special focus group facility and assist the lawyer in setting up the session and finding participants. There are many articles about focus groups and how they should be run. Many lawyers, like those in our firm, use a building conference room away from their office so it isn’t clear who is putting on the session, and then use a dedicated cell-phone to talk to, and choose, the participants.
