District Court Erred by Dismissing Expert Opinions as Conjectural

Election Experts Testify in Virginia Voter ID Case

Camille Sedar parked her car on the ground level of a parking garage at Reston Town Center, where she planned to have lunch with friends. Reston Town Center is a mixed-use development in Reston, Virginia. Patrons who park in the garage must climb up a short flight of stairs before crossing a brick-paved landing and […]

District Court’s Grant of Preliminary Injunction Reversed Because Court Took Expert Opinion Out of Context

An online car-sharing service called Turo allows car owners to rent out their cars to others. The company, based in San Francisco, advertises that its customers can skip the line at car rental services by asking the owner to deliver the car to an airport or hotel. The City of Los Angeles views Turo as […]

Legislative Committee Passes Bill to End Bad Convictions from Faulty Expert Testimony

A bill to end wrongful convictions due to faulty expert witness testimony has passed the California Senate Public Safety Committee. SB 243 California Senate Bill 243 is a criminal justice reform bill that was authored by Senator Scott Wiener, a Democrat from San Francisco, and introduced on January 21, 2021. The bill proposes to add […]

Idaho Court Affirms Role as Gatekeeper of Expert Testimony

An Idaho federal district court has affirmed its role as the gatekeeper of expert witness testimony, by granting in part and denying in part a defendant’s motion to exclude expert witness testimony. The Incident Maria Elosu and Robert Brace owned a vacation cabin in McCall, Idaho. The cabin was part of a homeowners’ association called […]

NY Attorney General Criticized for Presenting Expert Testimony to Grand Jury in Daniel Prude Death Investigation

New York Attorney General Letitia James made an unusual decision to include the testimony of a defense expert when she presented the prosecution’s case against Rochester police officers who allegedly caused the death of Daniel Prude. Despite evidence that Prude stopped breathing while being restrained by the police, a grand jury refused to indict the […]

Georgia Supreme Court Rules State Can Pay Expert Witness Costs for Pro Bono Defense Lawyers

The Georgia Supreme Court has ruled that the state can pay expert witness costs for indigent defendants who are using pro bono private defense lawyers. The Crime In October 2005, Tara Faye Grinstead went missing. Her disappearance remained unsolved for two years until Bo Dukes reported that his friend Alexander Duke had confessed to the […]

Expert Witnesses in the Derek Chauvin Trial

Derek Chauvin is on trial in Minnesota for second degree felony murder, third degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. The charges arise out of George Floyd’s death under circumstances that sparked nationwide protests regarding the use of force against unarmed suspects. Cellphone and bodycam videos establish that Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck and that Floyd repeatedly […]

Failure to Request Funding for Expert Violates a Defendant’s Rights

The importance of retaining expert witnesses in criminal cases was underscored by a recent decision of the Michigan Supreme Court. The court concluded that defense counsel was ineffective for failing to seek funding for an expert and that the failure was prejudicial to the defense. Hinton v. Alabama The U.S. Supreme Court has made clear […]

Will Lawyers Continue to Depose Experts Remotely After the Pandemic Ends?

Zoom has become a way of life for businesses that conduct interviews or meetings during the pandemic. Courts have used Zoom to conduct hearings remotely to avoid unnecessary gatherings that might spread the virus. Lawyers have relied on technology to take depositions without bringing lawyers, clients, witnesses, and court reporters together in the same conference […]

California Supreme Court Rejects Expert Testimony in “Meal Break Rounding” Case

In Donohue v. AMN Services, LLC, the California Supreme Court considered how California’s meal break requirement intersects with rules that permit employers to base wages on “rounded” time. As is common in class action wage claims, both the employee and the employer relied on expert opinions to establish their claims and defenses. Meal Break Rules […]

ExpertPages Blog