Barbara Anderson Carter

With 40 years in presentation and information consulting, for both corporate and litigation communications, Barbara has a unique background which is an asset in preparing litigants for trial. Barbara started her career in 1977 as the first woman hired on the west coast to become a computer graphics artist, in a nascent industry begun and developed by General Electric. GE’s Genigraphics launched the modern computer-generated presentation graphics industry, was the forerunner of PowerPoint, Adobe Illustrator, and Photoshop as well as many other industry standard software programs. Barbara was among the first group of graphic artists in the world to begin drawing on a computer, eventually writing a training program for computer graphic artists for GE. Barbara graduated from Indiana University, Bloomington with a B.S. double major in Fine Arts and Theatre, and a minor in Music.

In her early career in Los Angeles, she worked as a graphic artist on projects for every type of company at C Levels, and has generated millions of visuals for a broad array of industries. These include banking, utilities, entertainment, aerospace, food, data processing, benefits consulting, marketing, M&A, IPOs, scientific, military, technology, CAD, accounting, legal, medical, manufacturing, construction, and most especially municipal agencies such as public transportation and water agencies. She formed her own company in 1985 to provide presentation graphic services to these same industries at top executive levels, with such clients as Fox Broadcasting – a brand new network. Along the way, among other projects, in 1993 she built the presentation that Fox used to secure the NFL TV broadcast rights, away from CBS, which began Fox Sports.

Since 2003, Barbara has been devoted to litigation, and has been involved in over 500 trials, for both Plaintiff and Defense as a strategic litigation communications consultant, especially involving high-stakes complex litigation. She has frequently also worked the “hot seat” in court. Her litigation experience includes civil, federal, SEC hearings, arbitrations, mediations, and occasionally high-profile criminal matters. She is brought into trial teams to analyze evidence and provide strategies for organizing and building presentations, and assist throughout the trial process.

Among the matters Barbara has been involved with are: Landmark eminent domain cases involving attempted takings of public utilities, large civic and state public construction projects, public agency litigation – especially water law in California, intellectual property, class actions, MDLs, corporate litigation, banking, telecom, technology, bioscience, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, tobacco, breach of contract and partnership disputes, securities, entertainment, aviation accidents, aircraft construction completions, royalties, product and automotive defects, insurance, employment and partnership disputes, negligence, toxic tort, wrongful death, civil rights, construction defects, and others.

Her exposure to a broad spectrum of industries during times of rapidly evolving technology has provided a valuable ability to assess and provide consulting and presentations for a wide variety of subjects. This is particularly helpful for litigation, where understanding and preparing presentations for an array of complex subjects is necessary to provide streamlined information which is properly targeted. She frequently assists expert witnesses in preparing their presentation materials, has written and generated graphics for multiple opening statements and closing arguments, and has published articles on the effective use of trial graphics.

As a panelist for various organizations, including CAOC, ABOTA, and CAALA in California on trial presentation strategy, Barbara has also frequently given CLE presentations on visual communications issues around the use of demonstratives, organizing the evidence and storylines for trial. She has frequently provided direction and coaching to corporate executives and attorneys to assist with presenting for maximum impact.