Picking Justice

Dirk Vandever – The “Jeff Bezos” Approach to Winning Conservative Jurors

55 min · 23. mar. 2026
episode Dirk Vandever – The “Jeff Bezos” Approach to Winning Conservative Jurors cover

Description

Dirk Vandever [https://www.pophamlaw.com/attorneys/wm-dirk-vandever] asks jurors to say it themselves: "I'm just as rich as Jeff Bezos." It's how he gets conservative jurors to see that a low-income client's quality of life is worth just as much as anyone else's. A Kansas City trial lawyer with phenomenal verdicts in challenging venues, Dirk joins hosts Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] and Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/] to share what drives his success. Tune in for his secrets to framing equality-of-harm for vulnerable clients, asking jurors if they're skeptical before giving them reason to be, and approaching conservative jurisdictions by identifying community values first. LEARN MORE AND CONNECT ☑️ Dirk Vandever [https://www.pophamlaw.com/attorneys/wm-dirk-vandever] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dirk-vandever-86326012/?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F] ☑️ Popham Law Firm [https://www.pophamlaw.com/] | X [https://x.com/pophamlaw] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/pophamlaw] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/popham-law-firm/] ☑️ Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/harry-plotkin-154b367/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/harry.plotkin] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/trialbyharry/] ☑️ Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-k-kramer-1312b27/] ☑️ Kramer Trial Lawyers on https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/KramerTrialLaw]| YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWsz_lVvxH8eGIIAaiCzJYA] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/Kramertriallaw/] ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/picking-justice/id1787002391] | Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/52bsPNsBI3qWm7SjkOTACF] | YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@pickingjustice] Produced and Powered by LawPods [https://lawpods.com/]

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36 episodes

episode Bernard Alexander – The Beauty of Employment Litigation, from the Lawyer Who Won $136M Against Tesla artwork

Bernard Alexander – The Beauty of Employment Litigation, from the Lawyer Who Won $136M Against Tesla

The way employment litigator Bernard Alexander [https://amfllp.com/about/j-bernard-alexander-iii/] sees it, the beauty of these cases is that most jurors are employees. At voir dire, the plaintiff’s lawyer’s job is to get jurors to slip into their client’s shoes. In this conversation with hosts Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] and Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/], Bernard describes how he does that. His experience includes winning $136 million against Tesla in what was the largest single plaintiff harassment verdict in the U.S. at the time. “I get people talking,” he says. “But the people that aren't talking, those are the ones that I really want to talk to.” How? With direct questions like, “Has anyone here or someone you know ever experienced discrimination or harassment?” or, “Has anyone ever made any complaints inside the workplace about anything or know someone that has?’” LEARN MORE AND CONNECT ☑️ Bernard Alexander [https://amfllp.com/about/j-bernard-alexander-iii/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/bernard-alexander-856a2910] ☑️ Alexander Morrison + Fehr [https://amfllp.com/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/amfllp/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/amfllp] | X [https://twitter.com/AMF_LLP] ☑️ Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/harry-plotkin-154b367/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/harry.plotkin] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/trialbyharry/] ☑️ Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-k-kramer-1312b27/] ☑️ Kramer Trial Lawyers on https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/KramerTrialLaw]| YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWsz_lVvxH8eGIIAaiCzJYA] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/Kramertriallaw/] ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/picking-justice/id1787002391] | Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/52bsPNsBI3qWm7SjkOTACF] | YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@pickingjustice] Produced and Powered by LawPods [https://lawpods.com/] Episode sponsored by Focus Graphics [https://focusgraphics.com/].

1. juni 202650 min
episode Jennifer Keller – Business Behaving Badly? Telling Jurors "It's a Company" Isn’t Enough artwork

Jennifer Keller – Business Behaving Badly? Telling Jurors "It's a Company" Isn’t Enough

Some corporations may be “evil.” Others may be “heroes.” Good or bad, they’re made up of people. “Just saying ‘it's a company’ isn't enough. What company? What does the company do? And who are the people in the company?,” says Jennifer Keller [https://kelleranderle.com/lawyers/jennifer-l-keller/], speaking from her experience going up against and representing companies. She recommends finding out what kind of company you’re representing – like the upstart with a doll that competed against Mattel – and what your corporate client actually does – like the company trying to protect its pioneering colon cancer detecting process. She won $170 million against Mattel and $300 million for the cancer detection company. Tune in to this conversation with hosts Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] and Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/] for her insights about humanizing corporate clients, evaluating every juror individually rather than relying on demographic assumptions, and eliminating “cagey jurors.” LEARN MORE AND CONNECT ☑️Jennifer Keller [https://kelleranderle.com/lawyers/jennifer-l-keller/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-keller-3760037] ☑️ Keller Anderle Scolnick LLP [https://kelleranderle.com/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/keller-anderle-llp/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/KellerAnderle] ☑️ Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/harry-plotkin-154b367/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/harry.plotkin] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/trialbyharry/] ☑️ Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-k-kramer-1312b27/] ☑️ Kramer Trial Lawyers on https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/KramerTrialLaw]| YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWsz_lVvxH8eGIIAaiCzJYA] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/Kramertriallaw/] ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/picking-justice/id1787002391] | Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/52bsPNsBI3qWm7SjkOTACF] | YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@pickingjustice] Produced and Powered by LawPods [https://lawpods.com/] Episode sponsored by Focus Graphics [https://focusgraphics.com/].

18. maj 202647 min
episode David deRubertis – How I Stopped Hating Jury Selection artwork

David deRubertis – How I Stopped Hating Jury Selection

David deRubertis, one of California's preeminent employment trial lawyers, once had a streak of consecutive trials resulting in eight-figure verdicts. And yet he hates jury selection. How did he move past that? By embracing what comes naturally to him and how his mind works. In this conversation with hosts Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] and Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/], David describes how he’s leveraged that lesson to persuade jurors to shift their focus in an employment case – where anger, not necessarily emotional distress, often drives the verdict. He also reveals why one winning strategy may be to not pin the case on the individual client but rather on a corporate defendant’s systemic wrongdoing. A great example: His $464.5 million verdict against Southern California Edison in a workplace harassment case, the largest contested employment verdict ever. LEARN MORE AND CONNECT ☑️ David deRubertis | http://www.derubertislaw.com/LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-derubertis-6a201a6] ☑️ The deRubertis Law Firm [http://www.derubertislaw.com/] ☑️ Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/harry-plotkin-154b367/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/harry.plotkin] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/trialbyharry/] ☑️ Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-k-kramer-1312b27/] ☑️ Kramer Trial Lawyers on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/KramerTrialLaw]| YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWsz_lVvxH8eGIIAaiCzJYA] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/Kramertriallaw/] ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/picking-justice/id1787002391] | Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/52bsPNsBI3qWm7SjkOTACF] | YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@pickingjustice] Produced and Powered by LawPods [https://lawpods.com/] Episode sponsored by Focus Graphics [https://focusgraphics.com/].

4. maj 202656 min
episode Samantha Teal – What I’ve Learned from Consulting on More Than 100 Trials artwork

Samantha Teal – What I’ve Learned from Consulting on More Than 100 Trials

What a difference a month makes. Trial consultant Samantha Teal [https://www.smtlitigationconsulting.com/about] had not worked on a $14 million sexual assault verdict, $1 million employment verdict, $10 million employment pregnancy discrimination verdict, and $307 million verdict in a prisoner neglect case when this episode was recorded. A month later, hosts Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] and Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/] play their conversation. With experience consulting on nearly 100 trials, Samantha unpacks lessons learned – including why the instinct to prejudge jurors by demographics or professions could backfire, how she frames her signature voir dire question on "taking responsibility,” and when it might be okay to tell jurors that you’re nervous. LEARN MORE AND CONNECT ☑️ Samantha Teal [https://www.smtlitigationconsulting.com/about] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-teal-b6363a215?trk=public_post_feed-actor-name] ☑️ SMT Litigation Consulting [https://www.smtlitigationconsulting.com/] on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/smt-litigation-consulting-llc?trk=public_profile_topcard-current-company] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/smtlitigationconsulting/?hl=en] ☑️ Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/harry-plotkin-154b367/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/harry.plotkin] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/trialbyharry/] ☑️ Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-k-kramer-1312b27/] ☑️ Kramer Trial Lawyers on https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/KramerTrialLaw]| YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWsz_lVvxH8eGIIAaiCzJYA] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/Kramertriallaw/] ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/picking-justice/id1787002391] | Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/52bsPNsBI3qWm7SjkOTACF] | YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@pickingjustice] Episode sponsored by Focus Graphics [https://focusgraphics.com/]. PRODUCED AND POWERED BY LAWPODS [https://lawpods.com/]

20. apr. 202654 min
episode Daniel Rodriguez – This Farmworker's Son Seeds Million-Dollar Verdicts artwork

Daniel Rodriguez – This Farmworker's Son Seeds Million-Dollar Verdicts

Daniel Rodriguez [https://www.rodriguezlaw.net/attorneys/daniel-rodriguez/] is the child of migrant farm workers who settled in California’s agricultural heartland, where his law practice is based. So it makes sense that the metaphor he uses for his voir dire technique is “seeding.” With $122 million and $116 million verdicts under his belt, Daniel explains this and other strategies to hosts Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] and Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/]. Tune in for his insights about where clients should be in the courtroom (out of it) and what his biggest verdicts over the past five years have in common. Spoiler: He held off giving a specific damages number. LEARN MORE AND CONNECT ☑️ Daniel Rodriguez [https://www.rodriguezlaw.net/attorneys/daniel-rodriguez/] ☑️ Rodriguez & Associates [https://www.rodriguezlaw.net/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/DRodriguezLaw] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/drodriguezlaw/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/rodriguez-associates-bakersfield/] | X [https://twitter.com/DRodriguezLaw] | YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCugb0lk5iz3gdryFVVJkZTg] ☑️ Harry Plotkin [https://www.yournextjury.com/harry] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/harry-plotkin-154b367/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/harry.plotkin] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/trialbyharry/] ☑️ Dan Kramer [https://www.kramerlaw.com/team/dan-kramer/] | LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-k-kramer-1312b27/] ☑️ Kramer Trial Lawyers on https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kramer-trial-lawyers/] | Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/KramerTrialLaw]| YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWsz_lVvxH8eGIIAaiCzJYA] | Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/Kramertriallaw/] ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/picking-justice/id1787002391] | Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/52bsPNsBI3qWm7SjkOTACF] | YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@pickingjustice] Produced and Powered by LawPods [https://lawpods.com/]

6. apr. 20261 h 14 min