Video: Visual Aid lets clients store footage on CD for courts

Solicitors have welcomed a new digital video mechanism that will help them present video evidence in court.


The new tool, called Visual Aid, is aimed at providing free-flowing representation illustrating how clients who have suffered a personal injury live their day-to-day lives.


Geared towards the legal arena, it enables lawyers to store information on DVD or CD Rom format, which is more convenient than the normal VHS procedure. The product has so far helped in cases where four clients received some £10 million in damages.


The Visual Aid team works with the instructing solicitor; a film crew with broadcast-quality cameras visits the family home to ensure video content accurately reflects the client's circumstances. The crew is as unobtrusive as possible to ensure the client is at ease.


The video is then edited to the needs of the solicitor and is reviewed in a raw form by counsel. A customised CD-Rom is then branded with the solicitor's logo and colour scheme. Visual Aid can also store digital photographs, medical reports, statements and other relevant case documents.


Jenny Urwin, clinical negligence partner at Manchester firm Pannone & Partners, said her client had received £2 million in an out-of-court settlement after using the technology in a trial, and praised it for displaying a 'sensitive and caring' approach. 'At all times the aim was to provide a bespoke video in accordance with our requirements and they succeeded,' she added.


Other clients of Visual Aid include Alexander Harris and JMW Solicitors.