Articles Posted in Researching Experts

Wood products and lumber expert witnesses may opine on wood manufacturing, building materials, engineered wood, and more. In Environmental Facts and Green Building, APA-The Engineered Wood Association writes:

Wood, and more specifically engineered wood, is a renewable building material and is a good choice for the environment, for green building, and for long-term life cycle performance. With intensified interest in environmental impact and green building, it’s important to consider the attributes that make wood a good choice for the environment. It’s also important to understand how engineered wood products can be used to meet the emerging standards and requirements for green building.

The manufacture of wood products requires substantially less energy than the production of other building products such as steel and concrete. Wood product manufacture results in fewer greenhouse gas and other air-polluting emissions. And wood design compares favorably on the solid waste scale. Its environmental attributes make wood the natural choice for sustainable design.

Interpreters expert witnesses may opine on medical interpreting, source languages, sign language interpreting, and more. In Characteristics of Good Medical InterpretersAlex Uvarov, A&A Languages, LLC, writes:

Medical interpretation is an important subset of the field of interpretation that requires the interpreter to possess certain important characteristics. A good medical interpreter must have a strong medical vocabulary. The interpreter must know how to translate basic medical terms such as asthma and x-ray and also advanced, highly specialized terms such as nuclear stress test and sickle cell anemia.

One aspect of medical interpretation that can be difficult to handle is dealing with emergency situations. Sometimes a patient that an interpreter works with on a regular basis will have an emergency appointment and that interpreter will be called upon to go help the patient as soon as possible. In these situations the interpreter should make an effort to go to this emergency appointment, for the sake of maintaining continuity with this patient. In case the interpreter cannot make this emergency appointment the interpreter should follow up the next day to find out the nature of the emergency.

Medical illustration expert witnesses may opine on medical exhibits, medical graphs, medical charts, and more. Here, the Doe Report, a library of medical-legal graphics writes on MED:

Medical Demonstrative Evidence, or MDE, including medical illustrations, animations, anatomical models and computer presentations, helps attorneys and their expert witnesses communicate medical information, clearly and concisely, to a lay or professional audience.

At every step of a personal injury or medical malpractice case, it falls on someone to explain details of human anatomy, physiology, trauma and/or surgery. Some attorneys say: “That’s what I pay my medical expert for,” or “I know enough about my client’s medical condition to explain it to a judge or a jury.” However, no matter how good you or your medical expert are at talking about medical issues, using a visual aid during your presentation will increase your persuasiveness and ability to educate your audience.

Latex expert witnesses may opine on latex allergies, latex hypersensitivity, and related issues. In How Do I Prepare for Latex-Safe Emergency Care?, Gerri Rivers, EMT-1, Quad Cities Support Network Chairperson and member of the American Latex Allergy Association writes:

Latex allergy has proven itself to be a frustrating and potentially disabling and career-ending condition. Once a person has been diagnosed, they must then educate themselves and others about latex allergy. It is important that a latex allergic individual, be treated by knowledgeable personnel in a latex-safe manner.

Many latex allergic individuals are not sure how to prepare themselves, Emergency Medical Services (EMS), and hospitals to manage their needs. Those who attempt to inform EMS directors, hospital administrators or Emergency Department (ED) directors are often given the run-around, cold-shoulder and no help at all! The realization that few understand appropriate treatment guidelines can leave one feeling frustrated, angry, and scared.

Identity theft expert witnesses may opine on the fraudulent use of personal information to open new credit accounts, take out loans in the victim’s name, stealing money from financial accounts, and more. Here Steven Domenikos, CEO of IdentityTruth, writes on Top 10 Tips for ID Theft Prevention in 2010:

IdentityTruth’s statistics point to a continual year-to-year increase in identity theft-related crimes, indicating that as criminals get more savvy, identity theft becomes easier to perpetrate. The best bet is for consumers to remain informed on how different life events – from shopping and traveling to starting college and getting married – increase their risk for ID theft.

“ID theft is about much more than simple credit card fraud. What many consumers may not realize is that at different points in one’s life, we are all made more vulnerable to identity theft related crime,” said Steven Domenikos, CEO of IdentityTruth. “Taking some simple steps now and being extra-vigilant can help people from becoming victims of identity theft.”

Internet expert witness Peter Kent is the author of Search Engine Optimization For Dummies, 3rd Edition. His book answers the questions: “Why do some sites pop to the top when you search? How do you make yours one of them?”

You create sites that make search engines happy – that’s what search engine optimization is all about. Search Engine Optimization For Dummies has been the leading resource on how to make that happen, and this third edition is completely updated to cover the newest changes, standards, tips, and tricks.

This handy guide shows you how to get more visitors by getting more visibility for your Web site. Find out which search engines matter most, what they look for (and what they hate,) how to get your site included in the best indexes and directories, and the most effective ways to spend your advertising dollars.

In Four things an attorney should know about retaining an expert witness, construction site expert witness William Gulya, Jr., President & CEO, Middlesex Trenching Company, writes:

The decision to retain an expert witness is an important factor in any litigation. Strategic selection and communication with the expert can have a substantial impact on the case, from settlement options to court room testimony. The opposite is also true — the wrong choice of an expert witness can result in poor or negative results. I have compiled four recommendations for attorneys from an expert witness perspective.

2. Interview the Expert Interview the expert yourself; do not delegate this task. You understand your client and your case better than any of your assistants or paralegals. It is crucial that you hire an expert with whom you can work skillfully. You must have a clear understanding of the expert’s qualifications, ethics, communication skills, persuasiveness and personality. After all, it is you who will need to ensure your client that the expert witness on their case will conduct himself in a manner that you, the judge and the jury respect.

Trucking industry expert witnesses may opine on federal motor carrier safety regulations, interstate motor carrier operations, and federal motor vehicle safety standards, as well as related issues. Here, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration reports that the number of large trucks involved in crashes where at least one person needed immediate medical attention or a vehicle had to be towed away because of “disabling damage” has decreased nationally in the years since 2005. However, the number of those types of crashes has risen in the state of Illinois.

While crashes involving trucks do not constitute the majority of accidents that occur on Illinois roads, the speed and relative size of trucks are more likely to cause serious and life-threatening injuries when involved in an accident, such as:
– Spinal cord injury – Nerve damage – Fractures, dislocations and lacerations – Internal bleeding – Organ damage, especially to the kidneys, liver and lungs – Traumatic brain injury

Trucking expert witnesses may opine on federal motor carrier safety regulations, interstate motor carrier operations, and federal motor vehicle safety standards, as well as related issues. Here, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration reports that the number of large trucks involved in crashes where at least one person needed immediate medical attention or a vehicle had to be towed away because of “disabling damage” has decreased nationally in the years since 2005. However, the number of those types of crashes has risen in the state of Illinois.

With more than 8,000 serious crashes in the state in 2008, the most recent year for which data is available, highway safety is a concern for Illinois drivers. The Illinois Department of Transportation reports that, in 2008, 94,021 people were injured and 1,043 people died in accidents.

Semi-trucks or tractor-trailer crashes are a particular concern because of the increased potential for serious and catastrophic injuries. In 2008 there were 14,632 crashes involving trucks in Illinois. Fatal truck accidents accounted for 10.5 percent of all fatal crashes in the state, with 115 deaths resulting from trucking accidents.

In Insurexpert’s Blog, insurance expert witness David H. Paige, Esq, writes that court decisions interpret and supplement the legal standards created by statute and by common law.

When determining the value of a court decision as precedent for future liability of insurance agents and brokers, it is important to keep in mind that courts have a specific function in our legal system: to fill in the “gaps” by applying a combination of statutory law, regulations and prior court decisions to the facts before them. When legislatures do not make law on a particular subject, it is the courts’ obligation to draw from prior court decisions and the custom and practice of the community to develop legal standards on its own. The tradition of court-made law, called “common law” was adapted from the British legal system, and works well in the country as well.

Individual court decisions are sometimes “result oriented” and do not identify a trend.