Episode 171: Examination Techniques, Part 4 - The Reid Technique
From 10,000 Depositions Later Podcast by Jim Garrity
April 24, 2026 · 14 min · Episode 171
About this episode
Jim Garrity discusses the Reid Technique and its application in legal settings, focusing on its components and ethical deployment by attorneys.
In this final episode of our cross-examination series, Jim Garrity turns to the Reid Technique, the interrogation system developed in the 1940s for American law enforcement. Though the method has drawn serious criticism and been linked to false confessions, many of its individual components quietly appear in depositions, administrative hearings, and arbitrations every day, often deployed by lawyers who have never heard the name John Reid. We break the technique into three "movements" civil litigators will recognize: the non-accusatory, warm opening that triggers reciprocity; confrontation and theme development, where a sympathetic narrative conceals a damaging concession; and the compound question that forces a false binary. Along the way, we cover how to prepare witnesses to recognize tonal shifts, resist softened mischaracterizations, and reject false either/or options. Finally, Jim explains how taking attorneys can ethically deploy these tools themselves.
People in this episode
Host: Jim Garrity
Topics covered
- examination techniques
- Reid Technique
- cross-examination
- depositions
- witness preparation
Keywords
- Reid Technique
- cross-examination
- depositions
- witness preparation
- interrogation techniques
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Reid Technique
More episodes of 10,000 Depositions Later Podcast
- Episode 173 - Improper Preliminary Instructions or "Ground Rules" · June 11, 2026 · 15 min
- Episode 172: Second-Order Knowledge Examinations · May 8, 2026 · 16 min
- Episode 170 - Examination Techniques, Part 3: The Reptile Method · April 9, 2026 · 20 min
- Episode 169: Examination Techniques, Part 2: Irving Younger's Ten Commandments of Cross-Examination · March 31, 2026 · 12 min
- Episode 168: Examination Techniques, Part 1: The Pozner-Dodd Technique · March 2, 2026 · 15 min
- Episode 167 - Schedule-Proofing Your Depositions: Drafting Notices with Multiple Backup Plans · February 8, 2026 · 13 min
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