Melinda talks to Marilea Lewis, attorney and former judge, about what makes a good Family Law witness. In litigation one of the main ways evidence is entered is by questioning witnesses, but in divorce litigation this is particularly true. It is very likely that everyone involved, including both parties, will be called as witnesses during the trial. But it can be easy to accidentally say too much or to say something harmful to your case. Using her extensive experience both before and behind the bench, Marilea walks you through how to be the best witness you can possibly be. All this and more on this episode of The Melinda Eitzen Show!
About the Guest
Marilea Lewis is a former judge and a partner at Duffee + Eitzen. To find out more and to hire Marilea, go to duffeeandeitzen.com.
Key Takeaways About What Makes a Good Family Law Witness
- A good witness answers the question that is being asked, and only the question that is being asked.
- A good witness doesn’t offer up more information than was asked for in the question.
- A good witness always answer honestly. If the honest answer is, “I don’t know”, a good witness says “I don’t know.”
- A good witness doesn’t try to steer the direction of the questions. A good witness knows they’re likely to give the other side more ammunition.
Notable Quotes About What Makes a Good Family Law Witness
“What makes a good witness? Someone who can answer questions. Someone who can answer specific questions…Irrespective of your position, whether you’re third party or a party, the answer is going to be pretty much the same: listen to the question.” — Marilea Lewis
“As I always tell my clients, don’t volunteer information, especially if it’s information that you haven’t shared with your attorney, because the worst thing that can happen is the attorney learns something somewhat incriminating from his or her client while they’re on the witness stand.” — Marilea Lewis
“Many people don’t know that if an attorney knows their client is going to not be honest, or is going to intentionally lie on the witness stand, the attorney is obligated to withdraw. The attorney cannot put a client or a witness on the stand knowing that there is going to be lying done.”
“Listen to the question, and if you don’t understand the question there’s no harm in saying, ‘can you please rephrase it, I don’t think I understood it’.” — Marilea Lewis
“Don’t try to think about or figure out where the counsel is going with the questioning. Listen to the question, answer the question honestly, but don’t try to find the trail that the attorney is going down, because then it’s going to just confuse you.” — Marilea Lewis
“It’s so much easier for people to tell the truth. It’s when they start trying to fabricate evidence or color their answer that they forget what they said five minutes earlier.” — Marilea Lewis
“There’s nothing wrong with saying ‘I don’t know’. If that’s the truth then say it.” – Marilea Lewis
