Posts discussing how to best manage and grow an expert witness practice.
Attorneys use many different methods to locate expert witnesses. These include the following: Other attorneys – typically a referral from a colleague within the firm or a co-member of a professional association of attorneys such as AAJ or DRI. Experts who opposed the attorney in past cases – attorneys will take note of effective expert [...]
Workers' Compensation Expert Witnesses A significant portion of the Workers' Compensation litigation is now the cross-examination of the Workers’ Compensation AMA Guides expert witness. The Workers' Compensation Expert is almost exclusively a physician testifying about the presence or lack of permanent impairment in the claimant/injured worker. The Workers' Compensation expert witness testifying from the 6th Edition [...]
Trucking Expert Witness Opinion Excluded under Daubert In Call v. Harrison, The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia has held that a trucking expert witness opinion did not meet the reliability threshold imposed by Daubert. The court reasoned: Call offered the expert testimony of a [a Trucking Expert], whose report indicates has [...]
Insurance Claims Expert Witness Found Qualified to Testify In Lucas v. Texas International Life Insurance Company the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma has ruled that an insurance claims expert witness is qualified to testify on claims under a cancer/dread disease policy or standards for bad faith in Oklahoma. The court reasoned: [...]
Patent Infringement Expert Witness Excluded for Lack of Qualifications In Morpho Detection v. Smiths Detection, The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia has ruled that a patent infringement expert witness who admitted that he did not have the experience of one of ordinary skill in the art (the definition agreed upon by [...]
How to Get Going Providing Expert Witness Services Providing expert witness services is, in a certain sense, a very simple and easy business to get into. The three practical things you will need are: 1) Some experience, knowledge, skill, or training that a litigator may find of use in a case. 2) A curriculum vitae [...]
Types of Expert Witnesses I am often asked who is qualified to become an expert witness. Many qualified people never consider getting into expert witnessing work because “they are not a doctor.” Others may think that their area of expertise is too narrow. Let’s debunk both of these common misconceptions. First of all, you don’t [...]
What is the legal liability of an expert witness The law generally affords certain immunities to an expert witness from civil liability stemming from testimony or communications made in the course of litigation. The law on this subject is somewhat sparse and varies from state to state, but the expert witness should note the following [...]
Role of An Expert Witness Expert witnesses are allowed under the rules of evidence to “help the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue” (See Federal Rule of Evidence 702). The trier of fact in a jury trial is the jury and the trier of fact in a [...]
Expert Witness Questions Expert witnesses should anticipate the types of questions which they will face at deposition and during direct and cross examination. The types of questions the expert witness is likely to face while testifying at deposition and during direct and cross examination varies greatly. An expert witness in civil cases is on average [...]