The sequestration of expert witnesses falls under Georgia’s Evidence Rules, § 24-6-615. Ga. Code Ann. § 24-6-615 (West 2017). This rule requires the court to exclude a witness from hearing another witness’s testimony if a party requests or the court orders on its own. Id. The rule has three exceptions of individuals that cannot be excluded, and experts fall under the third exception. Id. The third exception is for “a person whose presence is shown by a party to be essential to the presentation of the party’s cause.” Id. While experts fall into the third exception, it is not a straight-line rule that automatically allows all experts to avoid sequestration, as it is not always necessary for an expert to hear all testimony to form an opinion. Bean v. Landers, 450 S.E.2d 699 (Ga. Ct. App. 1994). The trial court is given discretion to determine if the expert witness should be excluded or not. Id.
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