Understanding Dementia and Medical-Legal Implications

By Sanjay Adhia, M.D.  Dementia encompasses degenerative disorders to the brain. It can be subtle and fluctuate in severity even from day to day. It can accompany genetic factors, or be associated with an injury or repeated injuries to the brain and head. It is serious and marked by symptoms that can impair making informed […]

How to Choose an Expert Witness

Expert CV Checklist

Expert witnesses testify in more than half of all civil trials. In state court trials, experts tend to be doctors testifying in personal injury cases. In federal trials, less than half of expert witnesses are medical professionals. In some cases, the choice of an expert is dictated by circumstances. In personal injury trials, treating physicians […]

What Every Lawyer Needs to Know about Experts Daubert Standard Reports

Expert Witness writing report

The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure require experts to prepare a written report if they are retained to testify. State rules may or may not impose the same obligation. Even when state rules do not demand production of a report, a judge’s scheduling order might require a testifying expert to do so. Lawyers often tell […]

Screening Experts for Conflicts of Interest and Bias

Courtroom

Lawyers must consider several factors when they choose an expert witness. The expert’s qualifications, reputation, and ability to communicate effectively are key considerations. The expert’s location and the lawyer’s budget are practical issues. The potential for a conflict of interest is a factor that lawyers tend to forget. Fortunately, actual conflicts are rare. Experts are […]

Maryland AG Names Team to Review Ex-Chief Medical Examiner’s Work

The Maryland Attorney General has selected an independent panel of experts to investigate the police custody deaths that took place during the tenure of the state’s former chief medical examiner, Dr. David Fowler. Fowler’s Judgment Called into Question Fowler served as a key witness in the trial of Derek Chauvin, whose high-profile trial ended with […]

Death Sentence Thrown Out Due to Misleading Expert Testimony

Mental Health

A federal judge has thrown out a death sentence for a man who was convicted of murder due to misleading experts and insufficient investigation into the defendant’s mental health. The Crime In November 2003, Dru Katrina Sjodin, a 22-year-old University of North Dakota student, was abducted while walking to her car after finishing her shift […]

3D Exhibits May Help Jurors Understand an Expert’s Technical Testimony

a 3D printer printing a hand

Lawyers depend upon expert witnesses to convey their opinions in clear language, breaking down complex ideas into digestible portions that juries and judges can comprehend. While words are an expert witness’ primary tool, juries understand evidence more readily when they can visualize a concept. Studies suggest that people are more likely to understand new information […]

Will AI Replace Expert Witnesses?

Code

Fans of science fiction are familiar with the role that Artificial Intelligence (AI) might eventually play in our daily lives. Even in the present, machines are being programmed to simulate intelligence by learning, adapting, and making reasoned decisions that respond to new situations. Self-driving cars create the illusion of intelligence because they use algorithms to […]

Late Disclosure of Underlying Data Does Not Bar Damages Expert from Testifying

Plaintiffs in wrongful death cases routinely ask expert witnesses to compute the loss of the victim’s anticipated contributions to a family. The experts generally rely on past earnings as part of their analysis. Whether the belated disclosure of that data renders an expert’s opinions unreliable or otherwise requires exclusion of the expert’s opinion was the […]

The Psychological Impact of Remote Testimony on Expert Witnesses

Zoom Meeting

The latest pandemic surge is causing a new round of trial delays and courthouse closures in some parts of the country. Lawyers can only guess when the “new normal” will arrive. Defining a post-pandemic “normal” may be just as challenging as working during a pandemic. Remote deposition testimony has become common. It took time for […]