Most cases that don’t settle end up in trial because there
are grey areas in the case–situations or testimony that can be interpreted in
different ways. Computer/AI animation in court is often thought of as an
effective, albeit expensive, way to show events. Research tells us, however,
that there is a much more compelling reason to use computer/AI animation.
Computer/AI animation makes your interpretation of the event
or situation more concrete to jurors. There is always flux and indeterminate issues
within any accident or event reconstruction, which the opposing experts will
argue at length. But once the jurors see and hear for themselves your version
of said reconstruction, they are far more inclined to believe it. Computer/AI
animation is an easy, immediately understandable way to present your belief of
“what happened” in a way that makes it real.
That being said, the facts must be solidly incorporated into
the animation. Jurors will pick out the slightest incongruence between the
known facts (skid marks, length of surgical incision) and the animation. If
they do, the persuasiveness of your animation will be destroyed.