Articles Posted in Researching Experts

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 ensuring an effective audit process.

Extensive work goes into producing reports in litigation. The case team supporting the experts should have an audit process in place that ensures that all analyses were performed correctly and that factual statements can be verified from orignial source documents. In addition, the audit process should make certain that no information in the report is the result of only one person’s input or review.

Excerpted from the ABA Expert Witness Alert, Summer/Fall 2007

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 agreeing on an outline and defining the scope of the analysis.

Experts can often help attorneys better define the questions that will advance their case, as well. From an expert’s standpoint, the goal is to define questions that are sufficiently narrow to fall within his or her specialty, while also being broad enough to be useful to the client. Some experts are comfortable defining an expansive scope of research, whereas ohters prefer defining a narrow scope. Equally important as defining the questions effectively is defining them early. The expert and their support team should discuss the questions as soon as practicable, and the attorneys should provide their insights to get the team headed in the right direction with the right information. This significantly reduces the likelihood of spending time on research that ultimately does not become part of the expert’s opinion.

Excerpted from the ABA Expert Witness Alert, Summer/Fall 2007

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 agreeing on an outline and defining the scope of the analysis.

In some cases, a significant initial stumbling block is defining the question or questions you want the experts to address. Choosing the right questions and establishing the scope of the analysis have obvious implications for your budget; they are also relevant to determining how many experts you retain. Experts may be helpful in guiding you on which questions they think they can answer. Expect the outline to change over time, but ensure that the experts do not stray from their area of expertise. While experts should provide the most rigourous analysis of the facts of the case, they should also know when certain matters are better addressed by other witnesses, be they fact witnesses or experts in other areas.

Excerpted from the ABA Expert Witness Alert, Summer/Fall 2007

In Defense Medical Expert: Turning the Defense Advocate Into the Plaintiff’s Witness, R. Rex Paris advises on the cross-examination of a defense doctor. Paris writes that often the defense medical expert witness creates a “mountain of rubbish” which mesmerizes the jury. Because jurors do not have the benefit of court experience, they often become confused about the severity and/or cause of the client’s injuries.

The simplest way to handle this problem is by subpoenaing the defense doctor and calling them as an adverse witness. Any designated expert whose deposition was taken can be called as a witness by any party. (You have to pay them but it is worth it.)… It is essential that the defense doctor be discredited before the jury becomes convinced of their infallibility. In order to diffuse the defense doctor’s testimony, we must first recognize that we are afraid of the expert. We know that if the jury believes the defense expert, the best we can hope for is a lower verdict.

More to follow…
Excerpted from Consumer Attorneys of California, October 2007

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

In All Things Jury: Jury research as standard practice? R. Robert Samples discusses due diligence and preparation as the the most important responsibility that counsel owes to his or her client. Samples writes:

Law firms don’t hesitate to bring in an expert witness if they believe their testimony is crucial to winning the case. The hiring of expert witnesses is routine and accepted, and it is understood that the cost will be passed along to the client. If counsel is asked if failure to contract with a qualified expert witness could result in legal malpractice, the answer would be a resounding “Absolutely!” However, law firms and their clients may not be as accepting of the need for jury or trial research (nor the cost associated with conducting the research)…

Obviously, the services of jury/trial consultants are not essential in all cases. But as the complexity of the case, and exposure to damages increases, the need for trial research becomes more pronounced. In these cases, the types of trial research services that jury consultants provide becomes part of the counsel’s due diligence to ensure adequate representation of his/her client.

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 control costs.

Include expert costs in your budget. Consulting and testifying experts can be significant expenses, and you should ensure from the outset that your budget includes line items for this purpose. In all cases, agreeing early on a scope of tasks and requesting regular updates is the best way to avoid surprises and manage costs. Mid-course changes as well as last minute rushes are costly. If it is not initially clear which tasks are to be completed, hiring consulting experts may help to bring focus to the right topics once the issues are better understood. In large cases wilth significant ramp-up costs, you can minimize the costs associated with document management, learning curves, and coordination among testifying experts by relying on consulting experts for all phases of the engagement, with testifying experts assigned to specific tasks.

Excerpted from the ABA Expert Witness Alert, Summer/Fall 2007

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 deal with the timing of expert witness reports.

Because clients often want to review reports prior to filing, experts must complete their reports well in advance of the actual deadline. Depending on the complexity of the report, up to two weeks may be needed for auditing to ensure an error-free analysis and preparation of backup material. Planning to substantially complete the report several weeks prior to the deadline will leave sufficient time for you to review it, for your expert to address client comments, for the expert’s support team to resolve last minute concerns, audit the report, and complete backup material.

Excerpted from the ABA Expert Witness Alert, Summer/Fall 2007

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 set a reasonable schedule.

Whenever possible, work with the opposing side to provide experts enough time to perform their analyses and write their reoprts. Leaving only a few weeks for rebuttal reports and depositions can result in rushed work and though plaintiffs often prefer a tight schedule, both plaintiffs and defendants benefit from having time to respond properly.

Excerpted from the ABA Expert Witness Alert, Summer/Fall 2007

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. Here they give useful tips on scheduling academic experts to fit the time table for your case.

Most academic experts have teaching and research duties that can restrict the time they have available for consulting activities. The more senior academics often teach one semester per year. Identifying this period in advance, and working around it by utilizing the summer and other non-teaching periods, will maximize th expert’s availability for your needs.

Excerpted from the ABA Expert Witness Alert, Summer/Fall 2007