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In The forensic expert witness-An issue of competency, Forensic Science International writes:

Scientists submitting expert opinions within the legal system are expected to be knowledgeable in the forensic aspects of their particular science, as well as to be ethical and unbiased.

Scientists are seldom able to decline a request to provide an expert opinion in their field, even when their forensic expertise is minimal. The competence of scientists providing expert opinions in forensic cases is reviewed here. Three examples of the perils of uninformed “expertise” in forensic biology, medicine and anthropology are presented.

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In Witness Competency, Bonnie Sudderth, Judge of the 352nd District Court of Tarrant County, TX, writes:

Long before Robinson and Daubert subjected expert witnesses to a judicial pre-screening process, Texas judges were acting as gate-keepers as to fact witnesses on the basis of competency. In fact, legal history in Texas is replete with many grounds to exclude witnesses due to incompetency, most of which have long-since been abandoned or repealed, such as religion, race and criminal convictions. Two exclusionary grounds remain, however, in the current rules of evidence – witnesses who are mentally incompetent and children.

Read more: http://judgebonniesudderth.wordpress.com

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Quebec Justice Brian Riordan agreed to hear the testimony of Stanford University’s Robert Proctor in the class action case against Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd., Rothmans, Benson & Hedges, and JTI-Macdonald. The tobacco expert witness published Tobacco and the Global Lung Cancer Epidemic in 2001 and has previously testified in 30 trials. Dr. Proctor testified for plaintiffs in the $27B case.

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An ABA Section of Litigation Task Force was appointed by Section of Litigation Chair Hilarie Bass to explore the creation of guidelines for retention of experts by lawyers on behalf of their clients. At the August ABA annual meeting the ABA House of Delegates voted down the resolution to adopt the guidelines which described a set of uniform best practices for lawyers to follow when hiring experts. The control and administration of the ABA is vested in the House of Delegates, the policy-making body of the association.

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In EVALUATING AN EXPERT WITNESS FOR SCHOOL SAFETY CASES, school safety expert witness Michael Dorn writes:

The Need to Evaluate an Expert Witness before Hiring

Whether an attorney advocates for the defense or the plaintiff, few things can be as damaging to a civil or criminal case as finding out during a deposition or trial that an expert witness has serious skeletons in their closet, such as:

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SEAK, Inc. is offering the program How to Excel at Your Expert Witness Deposition January 26-27, 2013. SEAK has trained well over 20,000 expert witnesses, physicians, lawyers and nurses nationwide, and is located on Cape Cod, MA.

How to Excel at Your Expert Witness Deposition is fast moving and content rich. The course is taught using five methodologies: lecture, interactive exercises, videos of experts testifying in real cases, mock deposition demonstrations, and questions and answers.

More info: seak.com.

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In How to Prepare for, Take and Use a Deposition, litigator Daniel P. Dain writes “The deposition of an expert witness is the culmination of the opposing party’s defense or prosecution.” Mr. Dain is a founder and the managing partner of Brennan, Dain, Le Ray, Wiest, Torpy & Garner in Boston, MA. His book includes over 50 forms in print & on CD, including custom-crafted motions & case-specific deposition checklists. Topics include:

Goals and Strategies Legal Research of Issues Written Discovery of Expert Witness Opinions Sample: Interrogatory to Identify Expert Witness and Opinions General Outline of Expert Deposition Qualifications of Expert Under FRE 702 Impeachment of Expert’s Qualifications The Expert’s Understanding of Case Related Facts Basis for Each Opinion of the Expert Scientific, Technical or Specialized Kowledge Under FRE 702 Authoritative Treatises Expert Opinions Scope of Examination of Expert Witness Putting It All Together Into a Deposition Outline

Excerpted from How to Prepare for, Take and Use a Deposition.

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Thoracic surgery expert witnesses may opine on pulmonology, chest medicine, respiratory medicine, and more. The American Association for Thoracic Surgery writes:

One of the most important and controversial figures in malpractice litigation is the physician expert witness. The number of malpractice suits and the size of awards for damages have grown substantially in recent years, greatly increasing demand for “expert witnesses.” The increasing number of expert witnesses has engendered the need for clear definition of their qualifications and guidelines for their behavior.

The American Association for Thoracic Surgery has adopted the following statement of qualifications for expert witnesses and guidelines for behavior of AATS members when acting as experts in the legal system. These qualifications and guidelines apply equally to AATS members rendering expert opinions prior to the initiation of litigation.

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SEAK, Inc. is offering the program Advanced Trial Skills Workshop For Expert Witnesses January 24-25, 2013. SEAK has trained well over 20,000 expert witnesses, physicians, lawyers and nurses nationwide, and is located on Cape Cod, MA.

Executive Summary: This is the hands-on intensive training program for expert witnesses who want to raise their trial performance to the next level. Advanced Trial Skills Workshop for Expert Witnesses utilizes numerous interactive role playing exercises.

More info: seak.com.

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In Deposing an Expert Witness, litigator Daniel P. Dain writes:

Goals and Strategies

The deposition of an expert witness is the culmination of the opposing party’s defense or prosecution theory of the case. Before taking an expert’s deposition, the parties should have completed fact discovery-interrogatories answered, documents obtained, lay witnesses deposed. Presumably, your opponent’s expert witness has been advising the opposing attorney about documents to be requested in the course of written discovery and about oral discovery questions that should be asked of the lay witnesses, so that the fact evidence necessary to the expert’s opinions has been established. The expert’s opinions are being offered by the opposing party as part of a plan to defeat your case. Deposing your opponent’s expert ­witness is your opportunity to understand, limit and hopefully stop defeat. The importance of being prepared to depose this expert ­witness cannot be overemphasized.

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