Insurance fraud expert witnesses may write reports and consult on insurance claims, insurance carriers, the insurance industry, and affiliated matters. On its website, The Insurance Information Institute offers informative articles including Fraud and Abuse In No-Fault Auto Insurance System Results In a Substantial ‘Fraud Tax’ for Florida’s Drivers, I.I.I. Finds.
Read more: iii.org.
Marketing expert witnesses may opine on marketing effectiveness, marketing research, marketing strategy, and more. At Expert Communications.com, Rosalie Hamilton provides methods for experts to find prospective attorneys, companies and insurers that need their expert consultant services. At ExpertCommunications.blogspot.com, attorney Elliott Wilcox, lead trial lawyer in nearly 200 jury trials and numerous non-jury trials, writes Tips for Testifying. Mr. Wilcox cautions that this is just a quick primer.
Don’t get rushed. Get into the pattern of “Question – Pause – Answer.” By ensuring that you pause after each question (regardless of the question’s difficulty) you’ll avoid getting pushed into rapidly answering the defense attorney’s questions.
Talk to individual jurors, not “the jury.” Make eye contact with individuals. Think “conversation,” not “soliloquy.”
Computers expert witnesses may provide reports concerning computer storage, computer systems, computer forensics, and associated issues. In the news this week, Facebook will be building its first data center outside the US in the Swedish town of Luleaa which is located sixty miles from the Arctic Circle. The center will have 3 buildings of 300,000 square feet each. Facebook says the area is distinctly appealing because cooling computer servers is a major issue.
Risk management plans expert witnesses may consult on risk assessment, financial risk management, and related matters. The risk management plan prepared by the Northrop Grumman Corporation for Interoperability Montana explains risk management.
The identification of risk normally starts before the project is initiated, and the number of risks increase as the project matures through the life cycle. When a risk is identified, it’s first assessed to ascertain the probability of occurring, the degree of impact to the schedule, scope, cost, and quality, and then prioritized. Risk events may impact only one or while others may impact the project in multiple impact categories. The probability of occurrence, number of categories impacted and the degree (high, medium, low) to which they impact the project will be the basis for assigning the risk priority. All identifiable risks should be entered into a risk register, and documented as a risk statement.
Read more: interop.mt.gov.
Property insurance expert witnesses may write reports and consult on insurance claims, insurance carriers, the insurance industry, and affiliated matters. On its website, The Insurance Information Institute offers informative articles including Personal Lines P-C Insurance Markets: Trends, Challenges & Opportunities for 2012 & Beyond written by insurance expert and economist Robert P. Hartwig, Ph.D., CPCU.
The I.I.I. has provided definitive insurance information for over 50 years. See: iii.org.
Medical insurance expert witnesses may opine on health insurance claims, medical insurance deductibles, and related topics. In Understanding Co-Payments, Deductibles and Co-Insurance Scott Cornelius, board member of the Independent Agents of Oklahoma City, writes:
But health insurance companies take their position as insurers very seriously and they have a method for dealing with the risk of claims. First, they underwrite applications so that they fully understand the risks presented by each individual applicant (and for group insurance they look at the experience of similar groups). Next they review the applicant’s choice of policy so they can decide what rates they need to charge based on the risks that are self-insured through flexible policy options such as deductibles, co-insurance and limits. Finally, they structure each policy with a set of pre-determined prices (also called co-payments) for different medical treatment and the service of certain providers.
All these different facets of a health insurance policy can be very confusing, but understanding the differences between co-payments, deductibles and co-insurance is probably the most difficult.
Media piracy experts may consult on online infringement, international IP piracy, pirated goods, and correlated matters. In an effort to strengthen copyright enforcement online, the U.S. House of Representatives is now debating H.R.3261, The Stop Online Piracy Act.
Stop Online Piracy Act – Authorizes the Attorney General (AG) to seek a court order against a U.S.-directed foreign Internet site committing or facilitating online piracy to require the owner, operator, or domain name registrant, or the site or domain name itself if such persons are unable to be found, to cease and desist further activities constituting specified intellectual property offenses under the federal criminal code including criminal copyright infringement, unauthorized fixation and trafficking of sound recordings or videos of live musical performances, the recording of exhibited motion pictures, or trafficking in counterfeit labels, goods, or services.
Read more: thomas.loc.gov.
In Avoiding the $475,000 Mistake – Entering the Credit Bid attorney John L. Hosack, Buchalter Nemer, and mortgages expert witness Joffrey Long write:
The Other Problem – “Minimal Opening Bids”
The term “minimal opening bids,” refers to opening bids that have no relation to the value of the property or the equity being sold at the trustee’s sale, such as an opening bid of $2,000 on our $500,000 property. Many lenders start with minimal opening bids, then instruct the trustee to increase their credit bid in the event there are other bidders at the sale. The problem with a dramatically low opening bid is that the “Re-statement of the Law-Property Mortgages” (Fn1) states that if it is determined there were any irregularities with the sale, and the opening bid was for less than 20% of the equity being auctioned, a court may invalidate the foreclosure sale. Opening your bidding at a minimum of 20% of the equity being auctioned creates some protection for a beneficiary in the event an irregularity with the sale is later discovered.
Merchandise licensing expert witnesses may testify on character images, merchandising, and licensing fees. In Power Rangers Halloween Costumes Morph Into Copyright And Trademark Infringement Suit, Milord A. Keshishian writes on the case against Underdog Endeavors, Inc. Go to:
Insurance fraud expert witnesses may testify on insurance claims, insurance regulations, and associated matters. On their website, the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud writes:
Low-Risk Crime. Insurance cheaters view insurance fraud as a low-risk, high-reward game, and far safer than drug trafficking or armed robbery. Consider:
Six states still don’t have specific insurance fraud laws, thus discouraging many prosecutors from tackling tough fraud cases.
