Offering expert witness testimony is one of the best ways to convince a court that your claim is valid and the defendant is liable. It stands next to medical records as some of the most persuasive possible evidence. You can use expert witnesses to establish both liability and damages. An expert witness can make or break your case.
Lay Witnesses vs. Expert Witnesses
Oklahoma recognizes two primary types of witnesses in personal injury cases: lay witnesses and expert witnesses. A lay witness testifies about what they have personally seen and heard. For example, they may have seen the defendant running a stop light.
Meanwhile, an accident reconstruction specialist (an example of an expert witness) might examine skid marks and photographs of vehicle damage and testify in court about how the accident happened. There are also consulting witnesses; these are expert witnesses who can provide analysis for a case, but they will not provide testimony.
Types of Personal Injury Cases That Frequently Use Expert Witnesses
It’s not surprising to see expert witness testimony for just about any personal injury case. Below is a list of the types of cases where the use of expert witnesses is widespread.
- Medical malpractice: Lawyers often use medical professionals to establish the defendant’s duty of care. For instance, should the doctor have ordered a C-section at a critical point in a difficult delivery?
- Product liability: Engineers and safety experts often analyze product defects.
- Car accidents: Accident reconstruction experts can describe the exact sequence of a car accident.
- Brain injuries: The human brain is the most complex instrument in nature. Neurologists can assess the severity of a brain injury, regardless of whether it is related to medical malpractice.
- Toxic torts: A toxicologist might help prove a link between a plaintiff’s exposure to a particular toxin and their illness or injury.
Because expert witnesses are not cheap, plaintiffs and their lawyers seldom use them for small or simple claims. You wouldn’t use an expert witness to get out of a traffic ticket, for example.
How Courts Qualify Expert Witnesses
A court expects an expert witness to possess the knowledge, experience, skills, training, and education to offer credible testimony. Depending on the subject matter in question, this might include:
- An academic degree, such as a PhD;
- A professional license;
- Experience practicing in their field of expertise;
- Publications in professional journals; or
- A strong reputation among professional peers.
Not all expert witnesses need all of the foregoing qualifications. For example, an auto mechanic testifying on a brake failure in a car accident would not need a PhD. On the other hand, some types of expert witnesses might need qualifications that are not listed above.
Expert Witness Testimony and the Daubert Standard
Oklahoma’s treatment of the admissibility of expert witness testimony closely mirrors federal standards, including the Daubert Standard. Under this standard, admissible expert testimony must:
- Be relevant;
- Base its conclusions on facts and data applied to reliable principles and methods;
- Have been applied reliably to the facts of the case; and
- Help the court understand the evidence or determine a disputed fact.
Some Oklahoma legal scholars expect that, due to changes in federal law, Oklahoma might soon implement stricter scrutiny of expert witness testimony. These changes could complicate the process of admitting expert witness testimony into evidence.
The Notification Requirement
The opposing party has the right to know if you plan to call an expert witness, just as you have the right to know if the opposing party plans to call one. This notification requirement arises under two circumstances:
- The pretrial discovery process, where each side has the right to cross-examine the other side’s witnesses; and
- Whenever the judge orders a party to reveal information about any expert witnesses they plan to use.
Each party also has the right to know certain details about the expert witness’s intended testimony.
The Expert Witness Industry
Some experts spend most or even all their time preparing for cases and testifying. A physician, for example, might retire from the medical profession to work as a full-time medical expert witness.
There are even expert witness agencies that you can use to locate an expert witness in the area in which you need testimony.
Are Paid Expert Witnesses Credible?
Serving as a professional medical witness can be as lucrative as practicing medicine. The same is true of many other professions. Since expert witnesses charge for their services, you can be sure that if you use one, the lawyer for the opposing party will ensure that the jury knows the witness is charging for their testimony.
Most of the time, however, juries don’t consider expert witnesses biased simply because they charge for their services. Additionally, in many cases, both sides use expert witnesses.
Grace Under Pressure
Is it better to hire an expert witness who practices their profession full time or one who spends most of their time working on lawsuits? The answer might surprise you. Many lawyers actually prefer professional expert witnesses because they have faced the heat of cross-examination on many occasions, and they know how to handle themselves under pressure.
An Experienced Oklahoma City Personal Injury Attorney Can Help
If your personal injury claim arose in Oklahoma City, Laird Hammons Laird Personal Injury Lawyers can improve your odds of obtaining every dime of compensation you deserve. We maintain strong professional relationships with reliable expert witnesses who testify on various aspects of personal injury law. Contact us today at (405) 703-4567 for a free consultation to discuss your case and how we can help.
