New Jersey Court Reverses Medical Malpractice Defense Verdict Because Treating Physician Gave Expert Opinion Testimony

In an unpublished opinion, the Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division reaffirmed the New Jersey rule that a treating physician may testify about the diagnosis and treatment that he or she provided to a patient, but may not provide an expert opinion about whether a doctor who previously treated the patient committed malpractice. Malpractice […]

Expert Witnesses Challenged in David Riggins’ Successful Defamation Lawsuit

Juries are reminding bloggers that freedom to speak does not bestow the freedom to ruin lives with false accusations. A jury recently awarded a Dallas photographer more than $1 million after concluding that a husband and wife used social media and blogs to destroy her business. An even larger verdict was returned against a blogger in […]

Alabama Supreme Court Concludes that Daubert Does Not Apply to Testimony of Product Design Expert

Alabama’s version of the Daubert standard applies only to scientific testimony. In a case alleging that a car fire was caused by a defective automobile design, the Supreme Court of Alabama held that an expert based his testimony on years of technical experience in automotive design, not on science. The admissibility of his testimony therefore […]

Eighth Circuit Applies Sham Affidavit Rule to Expert Testimony

The subset of federal judges who aggressively use summary judgment to prevent plaintiffs from bringing their cases to trial has created a rule that prevents witnesses from contradicting their prior deposition testimony with an affidavit in order to avoid summary judgment. The fairness of the “sham affidavit” rule can be questioned, given that defendants are […]

Expert Testimony Not Needed to Establish that Negligent Delay in Diagnosing a Stroke Injured the Patient

Gavel and Stethoscope on Reflective Table

Most medical malpractice cases depend on expert testimony to establish three elements: the appropriate standard of care, the breach of that standard, and the injury caused by that breach. In Shackleford v. Lewis, the Kentucky Supreme Court considered whether expert testimony was needed to prove that a brain injury was caused by delayed treatment of […]

Federal Judge Limits Testimony from Taylor Swift’s Proposed Gender Studies Expert Witness

A judge has limited the proposed testimony of an expert witness called by Taylor Swift in her sexual assault legal action against a former radio DJ. Swift called a professor of gender studies to testify about the profile of men who commit sexual assault, however, the federal trial judge ruled that this type of expert […]

Medical Expert Witness Testifies in Death Penalty Lawsuit against Arizona

A medical expert has testified for the plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed by news organizations which seeks more information about the administration of the death penalty in the state of Arizona. The doctor took the stand early in the proceedings to testify that without full disclosure about the lethal injection process, medical professionals are unable […]

Brain Development Expert Testifies in Death Penalty Trial of Kentucky Men

Two suspects in the murder of a University of Kentucky student have presented expert witness testimony in an effort to avoid the possibility of a death sentence. Attorneys representing the young men have called a trained neuro-psychologist to testify in support of a motion which argues the defendants’ brains were not fully developed at the […]

Appeals Court Rejects Expert Testimony as Insufficiently Certain

In many states, experts must testify that they hold their opinions to a reasonable degree of certainty. That standard is controversial, since experts (like everyone else) can rarely be certain about anything, and the fact that an expert is certain doesn’t mean the expert is right. After all, scientists were once certain that the sun […]

Recent Case Highlights Flaws in Florida Law Disqualifying Expert Witnesses in Medical Malpractice Cases

A Florida trial court recently dismissed a medical malpractice lawsuit filed in 2009 after finding that the plaintiff did not obtain an opinion from a qualified medical expert that the claim had merit before filing suit, as Florida law requires. The plaintiff relied on Dr. Richard Dellerson to provide that opinion, but the trial court […]

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