Getting involved in the legal system: choice or chance?

The legal system and the laboratory are becoming involved with each other on a daily basis today and the technologist is, willingly or unwillingly, being drawn into this unfamiliar arena. This article will explain some of the manner by which a part of that arena operates, specifically the trial courts. Whether civil or criminal, these courts are governed by rules and methods of operation for the persons in them. In the case of the laboratorian, the role is that of witness, and this article attempts to dispel any fears of that role and teaches how to best prepare for it.