Miami-Dade Circuit jury trial People's Trust Insurance Company vs. Yusem Corchero et al conducted in person. Photo: Miami-Dade Circuit YouTube channel.

An uneventful jury trial was nothing to write home about before COVID-19, but now it's a major feat.

This week, after months of planning and consultations with epidemiologists, Miami-Dade Circuit held Florida's first jury trial since March.

The civil trial was conducted in person and revolved around two lawsuits between a homeowner and insurer, fighting over post-Hurricane Irma repairs.

Matthew Baldwin and Andrew Vargas of Vargas Gonzalez Hevia Baldwin in Coral Gables argued for the plaintiff, while Brandon Waas and George Hooker of Cole, Scott & Kissane in Miami represented People's Trust Insurance. And they say it panned out almost like any other trial — with a few crucial adjustments.

First up was a prequalification phase, usually reserved for long, complex tobacco or medical malpractice litigation, where prospective jurors were quizzed via Zoom about any preexisting medical conditions and whether they'd feel comfortable going to the courthouse in person.

It was a unique experience for Waas, who handled jury selection for the defense. He felt something was lost by doing the process online, as it's harder to gauge how well people are dressed, who's got their arms crossed or who's rolling their eyes when everyone is pictured in a two-inch box on a screen.

"You can't really tell the types of things that you can tell by seeing people in person," Waas said. "The jury foreman, for instance, ended up being someone who I never thought would have been the jury foreperson. He seemed like a young kid over Zoom, and it was like pulling teeth to try to get him to say something. But he ended up being the jury foreperson, and he looked completely different than he did over Zoom."

Plaintiff's attorney Baldwin said he spent the weekend worried about whether all the jurors would show up, considering some had to bow out during prequalification because they'd recently been exposed to someone with the virus, were particularly vulnerable or lived with someone who was. But he was pleasantly surprised.

"We were not sure if they were going to have some last-minute issues that precluded them or made them too nervous to come in person on Tuesday," Baldwin said. "We were glad that they all showed up in person as they promised to do. I think that we picked a good jury in the end."

All the key players who'd normally be in the courtroom were there — just a lot further away than usual. Everyone had to stay six feet apart, was kitted out with face masks and gloves and wore face shields while on the move. There was also plenty of hand sanitizer, and witnesses gave testimony behind plexiglass.

Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Beatrice Butchko presided over the trial, while administrative Judge Jennifer Bailey and Chief Judge Bertila Soto handled logistics.

"I think they went above and beyond to make everybody feel comfortable, and I don't think anybody expressed any reservations that they felt unsafe based on the level of precautions that were taken," Baldwin said.

Connecting through a mask

The biggest adjustment for Baldwin was trying to connect with jurors and witnesses while wearing a mask and face shield.

"You want to establish a rapport with someone and be in the most comfortable position possible to persuade and, obviously, those things were barriers to being able to do that," Baldwin said. "I think we were able to do it. It just took a little more getting used to and some patience to get over the initial discomfort."

Hooker also found it tough to remain nailed to his podium, since he's used to moving around while giving arguments and monitoring jurors' faces for reactions to testimony.

"The jurors were a lot more spread out than normal," Hooker said. "So, to see how everyone was reacting, you had to keep looking around."

Hooker said it also felt pretty "old school" for everyone to have their own exhibit binders in a banker's box.

"Instead of handing things to the jury and moving around, I would have to be like, 'Now, everyone, turn to tab K, page seven,' and you wait for everyone to get there," Hooker said.

No more whispering

Attorneys also had to sit apart, which meant text messages were key.

"Instead of just leaning over and whispering, we had to do everything via text message, and if the other person missed the text message then that was it," Baldwin said.

The trial lasted a full day, and was streamed live on Miami-Dade Circuit's YouTube channel. Jurors awarded the plaintiff $12,000 with a verdict that was nonbinding — an approach often used in arbitration which means the parties are not obligated to act on the result.

But the jury is still out on whether this approach could work en masse in the long term, considering how much time and effort it took to pull off one trial.

"It's definitely doable in cases like this, but if you're looking at much longer medical malpractice or construction defect trials, or things that will last weeks and weeks with hundreds of exhibits, I think it could be a lot more difficult," Hooker said.

It took a pandemic to take this case to trial, according to Waas and Hooker, who said its simplicity presented an opportunity.

"This was a case that I don't think my client, or even the insureds and opposing counsel, would have taken to trial normally," Hooker said. "We did this to sort of do our part to help restart jury trials, and because Judge Bailey and Judge Soto were looking for someone to do it."

It was worth the effort, according to Waas.

"It was very interesting to see how it all played out and to be able to see that firsthand, obviously, was invaluable to us and everyone in the local community," Waas said. "We were very glad to have been given the opportunity to start the ball rolling back toward some sense of normalcy."

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