In Utilizing Experts In An Expert Way, Kelli Hinson and Tesa Hinkley describe the crucial role expert witnesses have at trial and give advice on how best to use them. In this excerpt, Hinson and Hinkley give tips on how to agree with opposing parties on what is discoverable.
Judicial rulings on discoverability remain in flux. Given the uncertainty of this environment, agreement with the opposing parties on document discoverability will result in clearer testimony and reduced costs as the process is streamlined. For example, you might agree not to produce draft reports and to limit discovery to material ‘relied upon’ rather than merely ‘considered’ by the testifying expert. In the absence of such argreement, careful document management including emails and voice mails (which are now often digital files similar to emails) will avoid confusion as well as lengthy and expensive e-discovery.
Excerpted from the ABA Expert Witness Alert, Summer/Fall 2007