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7.5. Computerised summaries


Information may be presented in summary form in a trial without the use of any
graphical elements, by the use of databases, spreadsheets, hypertext and other
textual and numeric forms of presenting information.


Summaries as evidence - spreadsheets , and other forms


Rozenes (1991), describing a trial in which he acted for the defence,
summarises the potential value of spreadsheets in complex trials:

   Thousands of financial transactions can be produced in spreadsheet
   form and then translated into coloured bar charts and other graphs. I
   am currently defending a sales tax fraud where the prosecution has
   delivered 30 arch-lever folders of source documentation concerning
   several hundred transactions. An analyst has entered each transaction
   into a computer spreadsheet program and produced a number of
   spreadsheets. I imagine that if we are satisfied that the spreadsheet
   database accurately represents the source material, we will make an
   admission which will permit the prosecution to rely on the
   spreadsheets in lieu of the source material. Thereafter all references
   to transactions will be by way of the spreadsheets. The prosecution
   will no doubt have the spreadsheet program produce bar graphs and
   other charts in support of its case. We will do the same. Of course
   there may be occasions when one party or the other will seek to make
   some point by reference to the source documentation but, on the whole,
   the proceedings will be significantly expedited, I see nothing wrong
   in having the relevant financial analyst using a computer, linked to
   the court monitors, making various computations at the request of
   either party.
   
The use of spreadsheets and databases to summarise evidence may cause a need
for effective monitors or projection facilities to be provided in courts, as
may the use of graphics.


Glossaries as hypertext


A glossary containing explanations of technical terms, abbreviations, and
other terminology that a jury (or for that matter a judge or counsel) may not
be familiar with, is one of the most obvious aids that would benefit
comprehension in a complex trial. Such a glossary should only deal with non-
contentious information. A printed glossary is a valuable aid, and may be the
most useful form for the jury to have while the case is progressing, but there
may be further advantages in using it in computerised form. One limitation on
the usefulness of printed glossaries is that they may significantly slow the
speed at which a juror (or anyone else) can read transcript or statements,
because (i) the transcript will not tell the reader whether a particular term
which the reader is unsure of is found in the glossary, so it is necessary to
look up the term to find out; and (ii) a separate document must be opened and
paged through on each occasion. Further, the reader gets no warning when
reading transcript or statements that terms being used are technical
terms, and it would be useful to look up the term in the

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