Expert Witness Blog

In Fire Investigation Reports: The Key to Writing a Quality Report fire expert witness and Principal of Pyrocop, Inc., Robert Rowe “Who is your audience?”

When writing a fire investigation report, the fire investigator should determine who the target audience will be (i.e. attorneys, insurance companies, public entities, etc.) and write the report for that particular audience. Remember, the person reading the report may know nothing about fire investigation.

The fire investigator must also avoid terminology that only fire investigators understand. If you do use terminology known only to fire experts, then be sure to explain the terms. Below are a few examples;

In Alternative Dispute Resolution in the Hospitality Industry hospitality expert witness Maurice Robinson writes on ADR neutrality and experience.

Regardless of the provider, it is critical to the resolution of the disputes that the “neutrals”, those individuals empowered to resolve the disputes, possess both impartiality and industry experience. The clear advantage of using members of ISHC’s ADR Panel is to bring not only neutrality and independence to the process, but to ensure that industry experience and understanding is applied when reviewing facts, analysis and testimony,

and in arriving at findings and conclusions, solutions and awards. ISHC members are professionals who abide by strict professional standards of independence that have been well established and recognized by the hospitality industry for many years. It is thus their independence, industry knowledge and professional expertise that is brought to the ADR process and makes an ISHC solution to ADR so desirable.

In Managing the Risky Business of Company E-mail Part1 internet expert witness Scott Greene, CEO of Evidence Solutions, Inc., writes that his company has documented, during the examination of electronic systems, employees who frequently say/save things into e-mails or store on a computer, things they would never say anywhere else.

In many cases we have found that most policies do not adequately cover what is necessary in the computer and electronic communication age. Companies should have a very clear e-mail and technology use policy. One of the more important ones usually not covered, and unfortunately to the detriment of the employer, is an e-mail retention policy. Since many industries are governed by different and specific federal and/or state statutes on how long information must be retained, your policy should reflect these guidelines.

The policy should be as specific as possible in what types of communications are kept and how long. Make it clear there are both business and legal reasons for the company keeping such information. Information from e-mails as well as other electronic systems can be used in many types of cases, including: harassment, discrimination, antitrust, retaliation, Americans with Disabilities Act, insider trading, accounting fraud, improper trade secret disclosure and more!

Document examination expert witness Ronald N. Morris is a certified forensic document examiner and in this excerpt from Submitting a Handwriting Case for Examination, he writes on preparing a work request.

After separating the documents into questioned and known, the next step is to prepare a work request. The work request can be a specially designed form or letter. Regardless of which format is used the work request should contain the following elements:

a. A specific and complete description of the submitted documents, both questioned and known.

In Security Experts: Litigation and Beyond, security expert witness Robert A. Gardner, CPP, writes:

Regardless of the focus of your practice, there may be a place for a qualified security expert in your legal tool kit. Consider making these suggestions to your client:

• In employment situations, have a qualified security expert review policies and practices with regard to employee selection and screening, employee honesty, and workplace violence prevention and response.

In Fire Investigation Reports: The Key to Writing a Quality Report fire expert witness and Principal of Pyrocop, Inc., Robert Rowe writes on peer review.

As the report will be read by peers, supervisors, the public and colleagues, it is extremely important that fire investigator uses correct grammar, spelling and punctuation throughout the report. Misspelled words and improper grammar can cast an unprofessional shadow over the fire investigator as well as the entire fire investigation. Each report should be proof read to ensure that it is not only complete and accurate but easy to read.

The report should also be written in the “first person” such as “I arrived at the scene at 9:00 a.m.” or “I observed heavy smoke staining on the exterior wall surface above the south entrance”. Try to avoid second or third person phrases such as “This investigator arrived on scene at 9:00 a.m.” or “this officer noted heavy charring”, etc.

In Managing the Risky Business of Company E-mail Part1 internet expert witness Scott Greene, CEO of Evidence Solutions, Inc., writes that his company has documented, during the examination of electronic systems, employees who frequently say/save things into e-mails or store on a computer, things they would never say anywhere else.

We have now asked and answered two very important questions. First, the majority of employees do not consider the legal risk of electronic communications. Second, as an owner/supervisor why it is crucial you understand the potential legal ramifications. The remainder of this article is devoted to assisting you in creating and/or updating your current policies.

In today’s litigious society, company’s both large and small should have company policies. These policies have traditionally covered areas from dress codes to vacation policies. Within the past five years companies have begun adopting IT policies, generally found within the employee handbook. As a professional Computer and Technology Forensics company, when we are called in to examine hard drives and/or servers due to a company suspecting the improper use of systems, we also discuss the company’s IT policies with the appropriate supervisor or IT manager.

In Alternative Dispute Resolution in the Hospitality Industry hospitality expert witness Maurice Robinson writes:

ADR Providers A “provider” organization is usually needed to administer the dispute resolution process,
such as a hearing. There are numerous providers of these services, including organizations such as the American Arbitration Association (AAA), JAMS, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), and the Institute of Conflict Management (ICM), which has provided the training and certification of ISHC panel members to date. While ICM is currently the ISHC’s preferred vendor relationship for the provision of support services in ADR, all panel members are prepared to serve with any provider in the ADR field where the circumstances dictate or are appropriate. Some existing contractual agreements within the hospitality industry, for example, provide for the application of AAA or JAMS rules, under which all panel members would serve. It is important to note, however, that the parties involved can agree to use any provider organization to resolve a dispute, even if it is not named in the original contract.