Jury consultant Susan Constantine is employing facial recognition software, but the jury is still out on the tool’s efficacy and impact.
Gabrielle Orum Hernández, Legaltech News
Jury selection is generally a process relegated to psychology experts, folks trained to look at subtle body expressions and make assessments to help attorneys get an edge on the opposition. Analytics is thought to be based on hard calculus and objective criteria, completely distinct from the nuanced, emotional work of jury consulting, which makes The Jury Lab’s use of emotional facial recognition software for jury analysis a little surprising.
The Jury Lab is the project of Susan Constantine, a Florida-based jury consultant who has examined juries in high-profile cases like those of George Zimmerman and Casey Anthony. Constantine recently partnered with facial recognition platform Affectiva to tailor its software for jury analysis, which requires the technology to read and draw data from up to 12 faces simultaneously. Constantine uses the data to provide clients with a strategic consultation about jury reactions.
Here’s a look at The Jury Lab and its application of technology for jury analysis.
Who it serves: As with any jury consulting, The Jury Lab is aimed at trial attorneys. Constantine said that the program can best serve in high-stakes trial work, though it’s unclear whether this is simply a business strategy or a facet of the technology. “It’s not designed for the $50,000, $100,000 settlements, it’s designed for a larger trial where there are big wins or huge losses,” she said.
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