Archive | Magnus

The Major League

My family is a baseball family. My dad, the late Park T. Pigott, Sr. played baseball, coached baseball, and generally speaking, lived much of his life for baseball. I am not usually fond of sports analogies, however, recent experiences with clients of Magnus Research Consultants have reminded me of baseball. Almost all of Magnus’ clients […]

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This minor leaguer experience was one of the strangest situations we have had in years.  We had been, to keep up with the baseball analogy, “scouted” by the end client (that is the entity/person paying our bill).  Our ability to work with the lawyer was limited until that scouting was completed.  Admittedly, this process was […]

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Politics of Litigation

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On May 20, 2021

Category: Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Jury Consultants, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Trial Consultants, Trial Consulting

Magnus is hired for many reasons. To evaluate the liability issues in the case. To assess the damages potential. To determine at whom to point fingers. To get a plaintiff to understand the realities of their case. To get a defendant to understand the realities of their case. Is it a case to try? Is […]

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The behind the scenes intrigue in many of our clients’ cases is often more important to our clients than the outcome of their jury research.  One of my all time favorite clients, now deceased, was a wonderful attorney who worked for a government agency.  Until he hired Magnus to work on several of his cases, […]

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Holiday Inn

I wish it were possible to know the number of Holiday Inns where I have stayed and the number of nights I have stayed in them. When my parents and I traveled across the “lower 48″ states in the United States, our hotel of choice was Holiday Inn. Often, we planned our itinerary around the […]

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It has been interesting to see the world adjust to a pandemic with microscopic particles scaring us all.  Not that we are staying at hotels frequently like we did pre-pandemic, but for business and family reasons, we have, I have, traveled a little in the pandemic times.  All hotel chains are making adjustments and taking […]

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Retainers

Call it a deposit; call it a retainer. Magnus doesn’t start work without one (except in rare circumstances beyond the scope of this post). We need money, we want money; importantly, other people want money. We learned, the hard way, that clients need to “show us the money.” One of our first cases blew up […]

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No one works for free.  By definition, work is performed in exchange for compensation.  (The obvious exceptions, such as slavery, human trafficking, etc., are beyond the scope of this post.)  The fact that one of the largest law firms in the U.S.A., as well as its client, one of the largest corporations in the world, […]

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Bystander apathy

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On May 11, 2021

Category: Getting Through Life and Work, Giving Back, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Psychology

Why do some people help others in need while other people appear to ignore the suffering of another person? What factors make it likely that bystanders will intervene when a stranger is in obvious need of help, for example, while being attacked in a public place? What is the impact of other people on the […]

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Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On May 11, 2021

Category: Getting Through Life and Work, Giving Back, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Psychology

I’d like to think I’m a helper in a situation that requires it.  I certainly take the time and make the effort to call police or EMS when I witness an accident or dangerous situation.  Melissa and I have also stopped to help when we have witnessed traffic accidents.  In the instance I’m thinking of, […]

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Thanks Mindi!

Melissa and I had the pleasure to watch a live stream concert recently – a full band concert of Mindi Abair and the Boneshakers. They played Mindi’s new CD, “The Best of Mindi Abair.” We’ve had the pleasure of seeing Mindi in concert a few times. She puts on a great show! Mindi is a […]

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I share David’s sentiment: Thanks, Mindi!  And, thanks, Eric!  David and I have spent countless hours during the pandemic watching Mind Abair’s live streamed concerts.  Most of them involve her, solo, but others have included some of her famous and talented friends and band mates.  In these times when many musicians and other performers are […]

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Heuristical thinking

Biases and heuristics often, but not always, go hand in hand. While bias is attributed to the absence of reflective thought, leading to limitations in judgment, heuristics are used intentionally when making inferences. Heuristics are common sense reasoning strategies employed by laypersons. They are “shortcuts” that accelerate the decision making process. Heuristics may or may […]

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Magnus’ reports often contain a section entitled “Heuristics” and, when I’m showing our sample report to prospective clients, I usually have to explain what a heuristic is and why it is important.  I typically explain that heuristics are the ways that the jurors relate to a case – in their own language.  Whether it is […]

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Don Williams

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On April 29, 2021

Category: Careers, Getting the Job Done, Giving Back, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Small Business Success

Recently, I was “chatting” with a family friend, Don Williams. (Don and my parents have been friends for longer than I’ve been alive. Don calls my Dad “Humman” – his southernized version of Herman.) Our chat was via email and, though it was on an unrelated topic, I starting thinking about how he helped me, […]

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Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On April 29, 2021

Category: Careers, Getting the Job Done, Giving Back, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Small Business Success

David’s parents, Carole and Herman, have (or in Carole’s case, had) some wonderful friends.  Herman, like me, has many friends from childhood, including someone with whom he attended kindergarten.  Among Carole and Herman’s friends are a tight knit group fondly referred to as “the dinner club.”  This group of friends used to go out once […]

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Social desirability

Social desirability has important implications in jury selection. Social desirability refers to the phenomenon of saying or doing something because “everybody else” does. For example, when an attorney or a judge asks a prospective juror whether he/she can put aside all biases, predisposed beliefs, and personal feelings and instead, be an impartial judge of the […]

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Answering a question in a socially desirable way implies there is a “right” or expected answer, to some degree.  In the basic courtroom questioning of prospective jurors as to whether they “can be fair,” it is pretty obvious that one is not expected to say “no”.  Being fair is a fundamental trait that most people […]

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Your Momma Doesn’t Work here…

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On April 22, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Careers, Employment, Getting the Job Done, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Managing Employees, Small Business Success

This topic has been on my list for a long time. It is another example, among many, where Melissa and I have been surprised at the actions of employees and we have learned something along the way. “Your momma doesn’t work here” might be the start of certain admonitions, such as “Your momma doesn’t work […]

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Readers of David’s and my post may think we sometimes “color the truth” to exaggerate the experiences we have had as employers, small business owners, and consultants with attorneys as clients.  We don’t.  It’s all true.  The truth is, in many instances, more wacky than any story I could invent!  I often think of my […]

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