Expert Witness Blog

Opinions

Practical guidance for expert witnesses — testimony, report writing, depositions, fees and building a successful practice.

July 2, 2020

Daubert: Applies to Bench Trials

The U.S. District Court of Appeals (3rd Cir) dealt with a condemnation proceeding under the Natural Gas Act. The court took this opportunity to clarify that Daubert does in fact apply in bench trials. The court stated: We start with a clarification about the role Rule 702 plays in bench trials. As we have explained, “a trial judge acts as

June 29, 2020

Daubert Challenge: Common Sense Expert Opinion

Steven Babitsky, Esq. The U.S. District Court of Appeals (3rd Cir) dealt with a Daubert Challenge to expert testimony in a condemnation proceeding. The court found that admitting the testimony was in error despite the fact that it was a bench trial. The court found the testimony was unreliable and stated: Take the reports. They lack any suggestion that the

March 6, 2020

Life Care Planner – Need for Physician Review

The U.S. District Court, W.D. Virginia dealt with a federal tort claims act case – a podiatrist, Bonk, treated the plaintiff with surgery for an injured ankle which resulted in an amputation of the leg below the knee. The U.S. hired Wirt, a registered nurse and certified life care planner to rebut the plaintiff’s physician life care plan. The plaintiff

February 28, 2020

Life Care Plan: No Medical Exam

Steven Babitsky Esq. The United States District Court, W.D. Kentucky dealt with the plaintiff, Schall, who was in a motorcycle accident and rendered a paraplegic. Here there was a battle of life care planner experts. There was an attempt to exclude the testimony of Dr. Castillo, an assistant professor of neurosurgery PM&R Division of University of Louisville. Dr. Castillo intended

January 31, 2020

Expert Fee Arrangements Must be Disclosed

The U.S, District court S.D. Florida dealt with the issue of whether fee arrangements between an expert witness and counsel must be disclosed during discovery. The expert was a loss consultant and was provided with a 10% prelitigation fee for his services. The court ordered the production of the agreement and stated: First, the Court finds that the agreement at

January 27, 2020

Daubert: Mechanical Engineer on Fire

The Nebraska Supreme Court dealt with a fire that broke out in the basement of a pub in Plattsmouth, Nebraska. A chiropractic group alleged that the negligent maintenance of equipment located in the basement of the pub caused the fire. The plaintiff offered the testimony of Duane Wolf, a mechanical engineer, with a background in fire and explosions investigations. The

August 23, 2019

Reasonable Expert Witness Fees: Court Reduces Expert’s Deposition Preparation Fees

How will the courts determine reasonable fees for expert witness preparation time for a deposition? The United States District Court for the District of Colorado recently spoke on the issue in Sterisil, Inc. v. Proedge Dental Products, Inc., civil action no. 13-cv-01210-REB (U.S. Dist. Ct. D. Colo. Mar. 29, 2019), a patent infringement case. The defendant challenged the reasonableness of

October 31, 2017

What do Courts Consider to be a Reasonable Expert Witness Fee/Rate for an Actuarial Expert Witness?

In this case, plaintiffs requested expert witness fees for an actuarial witness. Cohen v. Jaffe, Raitt, Heuer, No. 2:16-cv-11484, 2017 WL 3616485 (E.D. Mich. Aug. 23, 2017). The court was inquired to determine whether the fees requested for the expert’s services were reasonable. Id. The court described the fee requested as “eye popping” and established an appropriate rate for an

October 30, 2017

What do Courts Consider to be a Reasonable Expert Witness Fee/Rate for a Psychologist and/or Physiatrist Expert Witness?

This case involved a dispute over the appropriate rates for plaintiff’s expert psychologist and physiatrist. O’Neal v. Century Insurance Company, No. 13-00058 ACK-RLP, 2015 WL 12697660 (D. Haw. Aug. 31, 2015). Both witnesses requested an hourly rate of $1,000, and the defendant argued that rate was unreasonable. Id. In this case, the court provided seven factors that should be used

October 29, 2017

What do Courts Consider to be a Reasonable Expert Witness Fee/Rate for a Photography Expert Witness?

This case involved a motion by the plaintiff requesting that the defendant pay fees associated with the plaintiff’s photography expert witness. Stevens v. Corelogic, Inc., No. 14-cv-1158, 2016 WL 8729928 (S.D. Cal. May 6, 2016). The defendant responded by requesting the court only require the defendant to reimburse the expert for time spent travelling to and participating in his deposition,