ExpertPages Blog

Prosecution Challenges Psychologist Testimony in Rape Case

The prosecution in a Santa Cruz, California rape case is challenging the credibility of a proposed defense expert on sexual consent. The Crime Christian Daniel Rodriguez, 29, of Watsonville, California is accused of raping and restraining a woman on September 11, 2015. Rodriguez is charged with five felonies: two charges of rape by force or […]

Medical Expert Opinion Ruled Admissible Despite Failure to Examine Patient

Dawn Dawsey sued Carnival and the company that provided spa services for a cruise she took, alleging that her hip was fractured when excessive force was used during a bamboo massage. Each party brought Daubert motions to exclude the expert testimony offered by the opposing party. The judge sensibly decided to admit all the expert […]

Conviction Reversed Because Police Officer Gave Inadmissible Expert Opinion in Prostitution Trial

The Mount Laurel, New Jersey Police Department arrested John Salyerds as the result of a sting operation. The police ran an internet ad that allegedly offered prostitution services. Salyerds was arrested in a motel room after he responded to the ad. The police contended that the ad offered a “$50 short stay special.” Prior to […]

Attorney-Client Privilege Shields Attorney Communications with Expert Who Is Employed by Party

On occasion, a party in a case will act as his or her own expert witness. When a party proposes to testify as an expert, is the opposing party entitled to obtain communications between the party and the party’s attorney concerning the expert testimony? Certain communications between a testifying expert and the attorney who retained […]

Expert Testifies SC Man Charged with Killing 5 Children Has Brain Defects

A brain expert has testified that the Lexington, South Carolina man who is charged with killing his five children has suffered from long-term brain injuries. The Crime In 2014, 37-year-old Timothy Jones, Jr. killed his five children. According to prosecutors, Jones killed his son Nahtahn, 6, after the boy broke an electrical outlet in their […]

Florida Supreme Court Adopts Daubert After Rejecting It

What a difference a judge makes. Or, in the case of the Florida Supreme Court, three newly appointed justices. On October 15, 2018, the Florida Supreme Court rejected the state legislature’s adoption of the Daubert standard for expert witness testimony. The majority opinion concluded that the standard infringes the jury’s role to determine whether expert […]

DOJ Seeks to Limit Expert Testimony in CVS-Aetna Merger Case

CVS and the U.S. Department of Justice are seeking to block or limit the testimony of the American Medical Association’s proposed witnesses in the CVS-Aetna merger review. The DOJ’s New Scrutiny of Vertical Mergers In December, CVS Health, the nation’s largest pharmacy chain, agreed to purchase Aetna, the third largest health insurance company for $69 […]

OSHA Faults Expert for Failing to Investigate Facts Before Rendering Opinion

A company relied on an expert witness to convince the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that its workplace could not have been made safer than it was at the time of an accident that killed an employee. The expert based his opinion on an understanding of the facts that was not supported by the […]

Texas Supreme Court Reverses Decision that Expert’s Standard of Care Opinion Was Conclusory

Appellate courts often arrive at conflicting conclusions about the sufficiency of expert testimony to identify a standard of care and its breach in a medical malpractice lawsuit. The recent case of Windrum v. Kareh in Texas illustrates the danger of taking the evaluation of expert testimony away from juries, which have primary responsibility for deciding […]

Expert Testimony Excluded in Amtrak Crash Trial

The exclusion of expert evidence likely contributed to a not guilty verdict for a driver who was accused of causing a crash with an Amtrak train. Dana Naylor, Jr. was charged with involuntary manslaughter after an Amtrak train crashed into the garbage truck he was driving. The crash occurred near Crozet, Virginia. A co-worker in […]