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Winning The TBI Case

Winning The TBI Case

Written by: Tom Crosley
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About this listen

 “Winning the TBI Case” with Tom Crosley is a podcast created exclusively for plaintiff attorneys handling traumatic brain injury (TBI) cases. Each week, veteran trial attorney Tom Crosley shares insights from over 15 years of brain injury litigation and 60+ trials—covering not just what worked, but why. Episodes dive into emerging trends, cutting-edge neuroscience, recent verdicts, and real courtroom strategies you can use. Get practical tips, expert interviews, and real-world analysis to help you win your next TBI case. New episodes drop every Tuesday, so you can make TBI Tuesday’s with Tom a regular part of your commute to the office.©2025 Winning The TBI Case, Tom Crosley, All Rights Reserved Careers Economics Leadership Management & Leadership Personal Success
Episodes
  • John Sloan: Finding the Emotional Truth in TBI Cases

    John Sloan: Finding the Emotional Truth in TBI Cases
    Nov 25 2025

    “Jurors don’t decide cases on the facts… They decide the case based the emotional content and whether they can connect with our client’s story.” – John Sloan

    Welcome to Winning The TBI Case hosted by trial lawyer Tom Crosley. Listen each week as Tom provides practical, powerful guidance for litigating traumatic brain injury cases. This podcast is meant for litigation attorneys who are ready to explore the essentials of TBI cases to confidently represent clients who have suffered traumatic brain injuries.

    Uncovering the Core of a Client’s Story

    In this episode, Tom is joined by veteran trial lawyer, John Sloan, a nationally respected litigator with more than 150 jury trials under his belt. John brings four decades of insight to a deep and candid discussion about what truly moves juries in traumatic brain injury cases. Together they explore how to get beyond surface-level facts, uncover the emotional core of a client’s story, and present before-and-after witnesses in a way that makes the jurors feel the loss that TB clients live with every day. John also shares his experience with the Trial Lawyers College and how it has shaped his approach to storytelling and client connection, and why getting to know clients in their everyday environment is non-negotiable.

    Key Takeaways
    • The critical importance of visiting clients in their homes to understand the real impacts of their injury
    • Why medical documentation can make or break your case
    • Why mild TBI clients often deny their own symptoms and how to handle that effectively
    • How a lay witness can be more powerful than even the best neuroimaging
    • The reason why specialized trial education can help litigators to better hear the hidden meaning behind what clients are saying.

    Trial lawyers will walk away from this episode with actionable strategies to strengthen their next TBI case and elevate their courtroom storytelling.

    Subscribe and Stay Connected

    Connect directly with John Sloan by visiting: https://sloanfirm.com

    Are you ready to take your TBI practice to the next level? Subscribe to our Winning The TBI Case newsletter at www.crosleylaw.com/podcast for exclusive case studies, resources, and trial strategies you won’t hear anywhere else.

    Join our community of trial lawyers who refuse to settle for average results. Subscribe to Winning The TBI Case on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. And remember, don’t just listen to the strategies, implement them!
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    32 mins
  • Making the Invisible Visible: Special Recap Episode

    Making the Invisible Visible: Special Recap Episode
    Nov 11 2025
    Introduction of Winning The TBI Case: Strategy, Science, and Storytelling Imagine standing in a courtroom, representing someone whose life has been forever changed by an injury no one can see. No broken bones visible on X-rays. No scars to photograph. Just a person who looks perfectly normal on the outside, but whose brain and the very essence of who they are, has been fundamentally altered. This is the world Tom Crosley introduced us to twelve episodes ago. “Traumatic Brain Injury trials are some of the most complex and contentious litigation scenarios that you can encounter as a trial lawyer,” he explained, setting the stage for a journey through one of law’s most challenging frontiers. TBI Trial Strategy Fundamentals & Advanced TBI Case Strategies with Keith Mitnik Keith Mitnik joined the conversation early to share a profound truth that shapes everything in TBI litigation: You need two completely different skill sets to succeed. “People either step in and try them and don’t truly know the science,” Keith observed, “or they know the science in their sleep, but they don’t know how to try a case with it. It takes both to do them right.” This isn’t your typical car crash case involving a herniated disc. This is a whole different universe of knowledge. And here’s where it gets interesting—Keith revealed that when medical bills are minimal compared to the damages you’re seeking, sometimes the boldest move is not presenting them at all. “Insider information gets in our way,” he explained. “We know we like to present medical bills. We know not presenting them may be unusual. Guess who doesn’t: the jury.” Sequencing the Evidence Tom then pulled back the curtain on one of the biggest mistakes lawyers make in TBI cases: telling the story in the wrong order. “Have you ever watched a movie where the twist at the end completely changed how you saw everything that came before it?” Tom asked. “Trying a TBI case is a lot like that.” The strategy is surgical in its precision: Build a wall of evidence before the jury ever meets your client. Prove the injury is real before the defense gets a chance to argue it isn’t. Win half the battle in your first two or three witnesses, drilling the point home so sharp and so early that momentum carries you through. How Expert Witnesses Build a Wall of Evidence But evidence alone doesn’t win cases. connection does. Tom revealed that while experts might be the brain of your case, before-and-after witnesses are its heart and soul. These are the people who knew your client before the injury, who can paint the picture of what was lost. They translate MRI scans and medical terminology into something jurors can see, feel, and understand. “When done right,” Tom emphasized, “they push jurors from understanding to truly caring. And that’s what wins cases.” The Power of Before-and-After Witnesses and Introducing the Plaintiff for Maximum Impact Here’s where the strategy gets almost paradoxical: In most TBI cases, Tom doesn’t let the jury see his client until deep into the trial, perhaps the 17th witness out of 20. “Timing is everything,” he explained. “You do not put the plaintiff on the stand until the jury is primed to see their injury and not just in medical terms, but in human terms.” By the time the plaintiff finally appears, the jury has been educated, emotionally invested, and prepared to truly see the invisible injury that has upended this person’s life. How to Tear Apart the Defense’s “Junk Science” Experts Episode eight brought us into the trenches of cross-examination, where Tom laid out his systematic approach to destroying defense experts in what he calls “junk science witnesses.” The strategy starts in discovery, trapping them early. Then comes the methodical dismantling: Expose their bias as paid witnessesUse their own words against themTransform their “normal limits” argument into a weaknessRemind the jury that biomechanical engineers aren’t doctorsFollow the money trail to expose the hired gun relationship “Nothing kills credibility faster than a hired gun in the hip pocket of the defense lawyer,” Tom noted with satisfaction. TBI: Not Everyone Recovers Then came the bombshell research every TBI lawyer needs to know. Tom shared groundbreaking data that destroys the myth that everyone recovers from brain injuries: “Only 27% of patients with post-concussive syndrome recovered after three months.” Let that sink in. And it gets more powerful: If symptoms persist beyond a year, patients are more likely than not permanently injured. And if symptoms last three years? The study found zero recovery after that point. This isn’t opinion. This is science. This is ammunition. The Multiplying Effect of Injuries with Steven Gursten Steven Gursten brought another crucial insight in episode ten, explaining how multiple injuries don’t just add up—they multiply human suffering. “Two...
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    14 mins
  • Stewart Casper: Mastering TBI Science

    Stewart Casper: Mastering TBI Science
    Oct 21 2025

    “I said, this is really interesting stuff. It’s not just broken bones or a sprain of a neck. This is something really, really fundamentally interesting, and it would require a lot of hard work, which I was prepared to do as a young lawyer.” – Stewart Casper

    Welcome to Winning The TBI Case hosted by trial lawyer Tom Crosley. Listen each week as Tom provides practical, powerful guidance for litigating traumatic brain injury cases. This podcast is meant for litigation attorneys who are ready to explore the essentials of TBI cases to confidently represent clients who have suffered traumatic brain injuries.

    Mastering the Science

    Stewart Casper has spent over 40 years becoming one of the most respected names in traumatic brain injury litigation. His reputation isn’t built on victories alone, it’s built on an unparalleled commitment to mastering the evolving science of brain injury. For two decades, Stewart has systematically read, curated, and indexed every significant piece of TBI research, creating a resource he generously shares with trial lawyers nationwide.

    In this episode, Tom sits down with Stewart to explore the insights that have shaped his legendary career. We start with where it all began when Stewart attended a brain injury conference in 1980 where he heard the term “diffuse axonal injury” for the first time. We then fast-forward to 2014 when he discovered neurometabolic cascade research that fundamentally changed how TBI litigators counter defense experts. Stewart’s career, spanning from that first brain injury conference to today’s cutting edge science, reveals what it takes to truly master TBI science in this ever-evolving and complex field.

    Key Takeaways

    • Stewart’s systematic process for staying current with medical literature and creating a searchable database
    • What the “citation cartel” is and how defense neuropsychologists manipulate perceived credibility
    • Tactical advice on MMPI misuse by defense experts and how to demand raw data exchanges
    • Why blood biomarkers and objective neuroimaging represent the future of TBI litigation
    • Advice for lawyers interested in TBI litigation

    Subscribe and Stay Connected

    Connect directly to Stewart Casper: https://slagermadry.com/attorney-stewart-m-casper

    Are you ready to take your TBI practice to the next level? Subscribe to our Winning The TBI Case newsletter at www.crosleylaw.com/podcast for exclusive case studies, resources, and trial strategies you won’t hear anywhere else.

    Join our community of trial lawyers who refuse to settle for average results. Subscribe to Winning The TBI Case on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. And remember, don’t just listen to the strategies, implement them!
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    29 mins
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