An attorney representing a client who has suffered a life-altering injury must vividly display to a jury or insurance adjuster, the impact of the injuries on their client’s life. Words are powerful, but go only so far. One of the most effective tools available to the trial lawyer is the day in the life video. These videos show more dramatically than any verbal description, the difficulties posed by the routine movements of daily life, such as dressing, bathing and moving.

Your lawyer’s choice of a videographer is critical. He cannot cut corners and try to do the job himself or through a paralegal or associate. The day in the life professional must balance visual candor with preserving the client’s dignity. Jurors may react negatively, even subconsciously, if they are repulsed or embarrassed by what they see. Clients must feel respected while some of the most intimate details of their lives are being filmed.

In one case I handled, a client who was paralyzed as a result of being dropped from a stretcher needed to use a mechanical lift to move from her bed to a chair. The device looked like something from a medieval dungeon and the process was slow and difficult. The day in the life captured it far beyond words. This case settled in advance of trial, largely due to the day in the life video. In another case of brain damage to an infant from a medication overdose, the day in the life video was essential to making the jury understand the limitations of the child’s daily life.

The video is usually no more than 25 minutes long and yet must capture various tasks and movement taking place over the course of hours. Sometimes the photographer will need more than one session. Although it is not required and some lawyers may disagree with the tactic, I generally send the other side the unedited version of the tape to prevent any objections that the editing was somehow deceptive. However used, the day in the life video is an essential tool in any case of devastating injury.