A (COURT)ROOM OF ONE'S OWN

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, January 12, 1993                   TAG: 9301120010
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium
A (COURT)ROOM OF ONE'S OWN
Jeff Krasnow, whose television advertising has made him one of Roanoke's most recognized lawyers, now has a new distinction - the only lawyer in town with his own courtroom.
Krasnow's recently constructed mock courtroom is on the third floor of his Campbell Avenue law office, just across the street from the building with the real courtrooms.
It looks like the real thing. There's a witness stand, judge's bench, jury box, tables for opposing counsel, even a jury deliberation room.
The only giveaway is in the gallery, where a comfortable couch replaces the usual hard courtroom benches.
This is the place, Krasnow says, where some of his hard-to-call personal injury cases will get a trial run to see how they might fare in a real courtroom.
Krasnow envisions bringing in a panel of jurors to hear one of his cases in an abbreviated trial. Jurors would then deliberate in a not-so-secret jury room, where a one-way mirror and hidden microphone will let lawyers look and listen in.
"This gives us an opportunity to get some feedback from the jury," Krasnow said. "I don't know anybody who has a crystal ball to predict what a jury will do as far as damages are concerned."
Krasnow doesn't expect to hold a lot of mock trials. "The reality is that well in excess of 90 percent of our cases settle out of court," he said.
But the mock courtroom has another purpose: "It lets us prepare clients and witnesses in a courtroom-like setting, so when they go in the real courtroom it's not as big a shock," Krasnow said.
The courtroom is only a few weeks old, but already it's been used for that purpose.
A client recently took the witness stand while Krasnow's two associates did lawyerly things like asking lots of questions and making loud objections to what the other one said.
Krasnow sat in the judge's chair. Someone had to, he said.
Although the jury was made up entirely of secretaries and paralegals who work for Krasnow, he hopes to find a more impartial panel for actual mock trials.
He may use old jury lists, or perhaps call people at random. Mock jurors could earn as much as $50 a day - much better than the $20 rate across the street at the city courthouse.
Sometime in the future, Krasnow expects to use the courtroom as a backdrop for one of his many television commercials. Krasnow's law practice, which is devoted mostly to representing people injured in automobile accidents, has one of the largest advertising budgets in Western Virginia.
Krasnow won't say how much he spends on advertising, but said it cost about $7,000 to build his courtroom. Other law firms have already heard about what is believed to be the only mock courtroom west of Richmond.
"Quite frankly, we would probably be willing to share it with some other firms," Krasnow said. "But not the opposing side on our cases."

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB