Lawyers Using Handwriting Analysis in Jury Selection
The National Law Journal reports that a small number of personal injury lawyers are relying on handwriting experts to help the lawyers in selecting juries. Handwriting analysis uses various clues, including the amount of pressure used, the size and angles of the letters, and spaces between words to paint a picture of a potential juror.
Maryland personal injury lawyers have no opportunity to see the handwriting of prospective jurors. But personal injury lawyers in other jurisdictions have the opportunity to review juror questionnaires that would provide a handwriting analysis. I remember reading somewhere that handwriting that is flamboyant and flowery would be preferable to the personal injury lawyer's client than tight, concise and analytical. (I'm not sure what someone would make of mine because it is illegible!) But if I practiced in a jurisdiction where I had the opportunity to see the jurors handwriting, I would want to see a study really on point before spending a lot of resources analyzing their handwriting.
