How an Attorney Will Call Witness Credibility Into Question

Posted Thursday, June 12, 2014 by Chris Thayer

Clients of a Seattle personal injury attorney often ask what tactics the attorney will use to show that a witness is not being truthful when testifying.

What a Seattle Personal Injury Lawyer Will Do If a Witness Is Thought to Be Lying

It is possible for an attorney to use the witness claiming not to remember certain aspects of a case as foundation to undermine credibility.An attorney will likely try the following: 1. Show that the witness asserting that he or she can’t remember certain aspects of the case is contradicted by the witness remembering meaningless details of the same occurrence; 2. Show that, in spite of the witness saying he or she is unable to remember specific details of this incident, there has been a clear memory of other occurrences from well in the past; and 3. Show that consistent responses of “I can’t remember” center on the most important points of the case.

An Attorney Can Use Witness Forgetfulness as an Advantage

The witness continually stating that he or she can’t remember can be used by the attorney to benefit the plaintiff. The attorney can take the consistent replies of failing to remember to corner the witness. This can be done by asking questions to which it would be hard for the witness to justify suddenly remembering the answers when he or she had just repeated “I don’t remember” over and over.

In order to prevent a witness from claiming to suddenly remember after seeing documentation regarding the incident, the lawyer can use the deposition to ask if the witness could be helped by seeing such documents. If the witness replies by saying no, there won’t be a way for the witness to claim documents helped his or her memory.

Contact an Experienced Seattle Personal Injury Lawyer

If you have questions about how witness credibility will be called into question, a Seattle personal injury attorney can help. Call Chris Thayer at (206) 340-2008 to discuss your case today.