During a trial, the fact finder’s ability to follow your presentation will be limited if unable to keep track of the documents being discussed. For a litigator, this requires particular clarity when a witness is testifying about documents.

Generally speaking, a numerical reference is easier for the fact finder to follow than referencing exhibits by the color of a tab or simply saying to a witness, “Let me ask you about this document.”

The process of having exhibits marked should be straightforward. If, for example, you are plaintiff’s counsel, ask the court clerk to mark your document “Plaintiff’s exhibit 1.” Then show it to the witness, lay the proper foundation, and move “Plaintiff’s exhibit 1” into evidence at the appropriate time. Going forward, refer to the document as “Plaintiff’s exhibit 1.”

As a caveat, unless you intend to offer and admit into evidence multiple pages of documents as a block, do not have a court clerk mark multiple pages of documents as “Plaintiff’s exhibit 1.” If you intend to introduce into evidence each page individually but they have all been marked as the same exhibit number, the documents will have to be re-labeled, and the time spent fixing this mistake in open court will stop the flow of your presentation.