Successful Use of Expert Witnesses

This book is a practical guide aimed at members of the legal profession who are looking to seek advice from experts on the technical aspects of a case or to instruct an expert witness. Expert witnesses are playing an increasingly important role in court cases, helping lawyers to investigate the facts and issues, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of cases and appearing in court to give oral evidence. Some experts, however, are inexperienced in legal procedure and could be more successfully guided by the litigator after they have been instructed. This important new book offers comprehensive guidance to practitioners for the successful use of expert witnesses in civil proceedings, referring frequently to the requirements of the Civil Procedure Rules. When to appoint an expert witness, who to instruct, how much and by whom should the expert be paid - these are just some of the questions answered in this volume. It also covers the more ambiguous aspects of expert witness appointment: what happens when the expert changes his mind, how to deal with breach of contract by experts, when might a single joint expert be instructed and what to do if the client has problems with the expert's report. Suzanne Burn, in association with Bond Solon Training, an organisation that runs courses to train expert witnesses in court technique, has used her vast experience in training expert witnesses to produce a companion volume to The Expert Witness in Court to help to ensure that practitioners get the very best from their experts, both in the run up to trial and in the trial itself. This book is an invaluable text for any lawyer who needs to instruct an expert witness for the legal proceedings of a civil case.