Posts discussing laws and court precedent regarding expert witnesses.
By: Kelly J. Wilbur, Esq. While some lawyers skimp on their expert witness testimony preparation, which can be an ethics violation on its own, other lawyers take the “preparation” too far. Furthermore, the practice of coaching witnesses during testimony that goes so far as to be essentially manipulating the witness’ conduct during the testimony [...]
The state of North Dakota does not explicitly follow either the Daubert or Frye test for the admissibility of expert witness testimony. State v. Hernandez, 707 N.W.2d 449 (N.D. 2005). However, North Dakota’s rules closely mirror the test established in Daubert. Id. Under North Dakota’s Rules of Evidence, Rule 702, experts are able to [...]
The state of Vermont follows the Daubert test for the admissibility of expert witness testimony. USGen New England, Inc. v. Town of Rockingham, 862 A.2d 269 (Vt. 2004). Under this test, the court should analyze four factors to determine if expert testimony is admissible. Id. The factors are: “(1) whether the scientific technique or [...]
By James J. Mangraviti, Jr. Esq. An expert witness must be qualified to give all the opinions which the expert proposes to give in a particular case. That begs the question of who decides if an expert witness is qualified. There are actually many people who decide if an expert witness is qualified in a [...]
What is the Definition of an Expert Witness? The Legal Requirements to Qualify As an Expert Witness Federal Rule of Evidence 702 governs the qualifications of expert witnesses. Fed. R. Evid. 702. Expert Witness Testimony Expert Witness Definition If scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to [...]
What is the Expert Witness Code of Conduct? Expert witnesses need a full understanding of the moral, legal, and financial reasons for acting in an ethical manner. Violating the expert witness code of conduct can be and, in many cases, will be subject to a variety of sanctions including prosecution for perjury, civil suits, monetary [...]
By Kelly Wilbur, Esq. One of the main components of expert witness assignments, when a plaintiff’s medical condition or status is involved, is reviewing medical records. This often begs the question, does HIPPA permit the disclosure of such records so the records may be reviewed by the expert witness? The short answer is YES. The Health [...]
By Kelly J. Wilbur, Esq. Expert witnesses may be retained to assist in the certification process for a class action lawsuit. These assignments are typically extremely lucrative. The lawyers will usually be willing to pay for top quality work-which takes time. Such assignments are also extremely high stakes. Whether or not a class can be [...]
By Steven Babitsky, Esq. The US District Court D. New Mexico dealt with an attempt to force the production of the expert witness’s notes in discovery. The court, citing FRCP 26(b)(4)(C) found these notes to be protected from discovery. The court stated: Rule 26(b)(4)(C) protects "communications between a party's attorney and any witness required to [...]
By Steven Babitsky, Esq. The defense organization Lawyers for Civil Justice has urged that the advisory committee on evidence rules and its subcommittee on rule 702 amendments the “reform” of a Daubert Enforcement. Specifically, this powerful and influential group called for the following: We urge you to move forward with an amendment to rule 702 [...]