Hiring a construction expert witness early on in your case is advantageous for several reasons. These expert witnesses may opine and write reports on construction investigations, construction standards of care, construction cost estimates, general contractors, licensed contractors, and construction disputes. They can also help:
Prepare discovery requests;
Prepare other witnesses and clients for their depositions;
If your case warrants it, it may be advantageous to hire more than one expert witness. For example, in an airplane case, you may need to select from the following types of aviation expert witnesses:
aircraft accident reconstruction expert witnesses aviation training expert witnesses aviation accident analysis expert witnesses aviation security expert witnesses air traffic control expert witnesses aircraft accident investigation expert witnesses aircraft contract manufacturing expert witnesses aircraft design expert witnesses
As much as possible, the experts should be instructed to avoid contact with each other to ensure that one will not “contaminate” the other(s).
Be sure to research and give serious consideration to the area of expertise you will need in an expert witness for your case. A few hours on cases analysis and background reading can save wasted time and money later down the road. If the case warrants it, it may be advantageous to hire more than one expert. For example, in an accident reconstruction case, this will allow you to:
1. Have the accident reconstruction expert witnesses compete and select the stronger one to testify at trial
2. Designate both as trial experts but keep one in reserve
An aviation expert witness may have experience as an aviation engineer. Aeronautical engineers are responsible for the design and testing of commercial aircraft, special purpose aircraft, missiles, space vehicles, and satellites and may opine on aircraft loss of control and airworthiness. Aerodynamic or thermodynamic engineers work on the development of systems and may testify on flight dynamics/aerodynamics and aircraft system-subsystem/failure analysis. Other engineers focus on more specific aspects of aircraft design such as battery technology and propeller design and may report on product liability and accident investigation and reconstruction.
Metallurgy expert witness Dr. R. Craig Jerner, Ph.D., PE, describes the metal failure analysis process:
The title, Metallurgical Failure Analysis, aptly describes the process, i.e., the analysis of a metal failure. In deference to my mechanical engineering friends, a metallurgist or metallurgical engineer is best equipped to analyze a metal failure. An accident or failure of a metal component, whether it is a simple consumer product such as a hammer or chisel, or a complex multi-component machine such as an airplane or a space shuttle, will normally not be a “simple” failure. Failures are normally complex. Often two, three or more separate but necessary circumstances or events are required to cause the failure or accident. Solving such a complex problem is much like solving a multi-piece jigsaw puzzle.
Guessing about a jigsaw puzzle picture from one or two puzzle pieces will usually lead you to a wrong conclusion. Guessing prematurely from one or two “facts” about the cause of a failure or accident will also usually lead to a wrong conclusion. A series of accident events and evidence will usually fit exactly with another set of events and evidence thereby allowing more of the true picture to be revealed.
Accident investigation expert witness Dr. R. Craig Jerner, Ph.D., PE, also specializes in metal failure analysis which he defines here:
Metallurgical Failure Analysis is a scientific process in which a cracked or fractured piece or weld is analyzed to determine the cause of failure. The metallurgical failure analysis process involves cutting samples from fractured or cracked samples, conducting a microscopic examination of the fracture or crack, cutting, mounting and polishing samples for scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), microstructural examination, microhardness testing and profiling, chemical analysis, etc. The goal of the process is usually to ascertain why the component cracked or fractured, i.e., causation of the crack or failure.
For more, see http://www.metallurgist.com/index.html
Admiralty & maritime expert witness Henry S. Woods, III has this to say on causation of maritime accidents:
Maritime accidents of all stripes – great and small – occur in a wide range of circumstances and conditions. The common thread that is usually found in the proper investigation and analysis of these accidents is not a sudden or mysterious failure of a system or item of equipment. Nor is it the lack of a properly functioning system or item of equipment. With the exception of product/vessel defects, the common cause of most maritime accidents are aspects of human error and human factors. The most crucial of these are:
maintaining a proper lookout,
Premises liability expert witness Fred Del Marva explains standard of care in premises liability cases.
It is common knowledge that premises owners are not the insurers or guarantors of their invitees’ safety. The duty imposed on them is to provide a safe and secure environment, and to provide reasonable care.
This duty is achieved by requiring premises owners and operators to develop and implement policies, procedures, and protocols that will either prevent or deter what is reasonably foreseeable.
In medical malpractice cases, the central issue is whether the defendant doctor had applied the degree of skill, knowledge, and care ordinarily exercised by other members of the medical profession under similar circumstances. Although this is left to the trial judge’s discretion, a physician or surgeon must usually have some occupational experience in the particular field at issue in order to testify as an expert witness. In a neurology malpractice case, the neurology expert witness would be expected to be experienced in issues such as ruptured aneurysms, seizures, spinal cord injury, head trauma, and strokes. Special qualifications may be required in emergency room physician cases. For example, in California the court can admit expert medical testimony only from a doctor who has had substantial professional experience within the previous five years as a physician and surgeon providing emergency medical coverage for a general acute care hospital emergency department.
Residential real estate expert witness Steve Cohen writes this on mold:
Most types of mold that are routinely encountered are not hazardous to healthy individuals. However, studies have shown that too much exposure to mold may cause or worsen conditions such as asthma, hay fever, or other allergies. Common symptoms of overexposure are cough, congestions, runny nose, eye irritation and aggravation of asthma. In those who are more vulnerable, more serious health effects such as fevers and breathing problems can also occur. Some molds produce chemicals called mycotoxins. Mycotoxins may cause illness in people who have sensitivity to them.
According to the EPA, “A major concern associated with exposure to biological pollutants is allergic reactions, which range from rhinitis, nasal congestion, conjunctival inflammation, and urticaria to asthma”. The most effective way to control mold is to control moisture. It is recommended that humidity levels be reduced to 30-60% to reduce the possibility of mold growth.
