Qualified Expert Witnesses
Expert witnesses must be knowledgeable in their field. It is important to not underestimate lawyers or their expertise. They must also be honest with their testimony and remain within their expertise. They will be able to survive cross-examination and thrive in courtroom. For this, they must be prepared to follow the proper protocol and procedures.
Experts are typically qualified by years of experience, publications, licensing, training, education, and licensing. Peer recognition can also prove their qualifications. They might be called upon to be consultants in a case or to testify at trial. Their testimony can be discovered by the opposing party.
Expert witnesses can be a lucrative career for someone who is an expert in one area. Many of these experts start as part-time experts within a specific field such as engineering, bridge construction, or construction. As they get older, they might decide to quit their regular jobs and become expert witnesses.
An expert witness can help determine the causes and durations of suffering in a case involving an animal. An expert witness can help parties decide whether to pursue litigation. Additionally, an expert witness can identify documents that are relevant to the case. He or she can also help attorneys prepare questions to ask opposing counsel’s experts, which is useful in settlement negotiations.
A court can choose to exclude unreliable expert witness testimony. Federal Rules of Evidence stipulate that the expert witness’ opinion must be based on sufficient facts and reliable principles. An expert witness must also be independent. Moreover, he or she must address his or her report in the court. A court can also co-instruct expert witnesses, but only in cases with small liability.
Expert witness physicians must be knowledgeable in the subject area. A biased expert witness could be a problem if he or she is not well-versed in the area of medicine at issue. This means that the expert witness should be familiar with the standards and practices that were in use at the time of the incident. Additionally, an expert witness should be certified by the appropriate board in the state in which he or she practices.
Expert witnesses can charge substantial fees depending on their expertise. An example of this is civil engineers and tree experts charging $100-150 per hour. However, high-powered economists and medical experts can charge $400-500 an hour. Experts with a national reputation may charge up to $1,000 an hour. However, they should disclose any conflict of interest.
About Bill Hartzer
Bill Hartzer is CEO of Hartzer Consulting, a Texas-based search engine optimization and online reputation management consulting company. Mr. Hartzer has been providing digital marketing and domain name, as well as SEO expert witness services for legal cases worldwide, and practicing organic SEO since 1996.