In your expert report, you explicitly listed everything you reviewed and considered that led to your opinions. Deposition transcripts and relevant other documents that have been Bates stamped, such as emails or letters, are all important to review. Your testimonial answers will be more comprehensive if you carefully reread all appropriate case documents.
If you based your opinion on any official documents, standards, or published industry practices, you should also review those documents and refer to them during your testimony.
For example, most jurisdictions have local civil codes that govern the drilling of a well, or the paving of a road. Companies engaged in interstate commerce may be subject to federal regulations and guidelines with particular codes. Doctors, psychotherapists and insurance companies are subject to codes or identifiers that are accepted in their industries and provide a framework for identifying and treating mental illnesses. The DSM, or Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, is the accepted standard. If you are testifying in a medical case, it would be wise for you to review the on point pages and codes within the most current DSM to refresh your familiarity with the issue in your case.
Refresh your memory about the meaning of common acronyms in your industry. In preparing for trial, rereading your own deposition is very important. As much as possible, the other lawyer will try to trip you up based on answers you gave during your deposition. If you made errors, you will hear about it. If you were sloppy in your expressions, you will hear about it.
If you based your opinion on any official documents, standards, or published industry practices, you should also review those documents and refer to them during your testimony.
For example, most jurisdictions have local civil codes that govern the drilling of a well, or the paving of a road. Companies engaged in interstate commerce may be subject to federal regulations and guidelines with particular codes. Doctors, psychotherapists and insurance companies are subject to codes or identifiers that are accepted in their industries and provide a framework for identifying and treating mental illnesses. The DSM, or Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, is the accepted standard. If you are testifying in a medical case, it would be wise for you to review the on point pages and codes within the most current DSM to refresh your familiarity with the issue in your case.
Refresh your memory about the meaning of common acronyms in your industry. In preparing for trial, rereading your own deposition is very important. As much as possible, the other lawyer will try to trip you up based on answers you gave during your deposition. If you made errors, you will hear about it. If you were sloppy in your expressions, you will hear about it.
Conflicting testimony between your deposition and the trial will always represent an opportunity for the opposing lawyer to attempt to discredit you, and perhaps legitimately so. Conflicts between current and previous testimony may be enough to warrant that the judge dismiss you and your testimony. If you neglect to study your own deposition, you will not be as likely to remember exactly what you said. You will not be as likely to state things in the same way during trial as you expressed them during your deposition. You will not necessarily remember the context in which you answered earlier questions. Smart opposing attorneys may quote your own statements during a deposition to present a conflict with new statements you may have just made during a trial. If you have reread your own deposition, you will know the context of any such quotation and can instantly point out the different context, thereby explaining any seeming discrepancy.
If you do your homework and conduct your expert investigation well, and nothing new has been introduced in evidence, then you probably will not have a different opinion at trial.
During this final review, you should also reread the other expert's deposition and discuss his opinions with your lawyer, even though you will have done this now when you originally went through it. You can reiterate and discuss the particular strengths and weaknesses of the opinions, and develop a joint trial strategy. Knowing what areas to concentrate on during trial to highlight your strengths and the other expert's weaknesses will help your attorney's presentation of the case. It will also help you when you are on the stand. And refreshing your memory about what the other expert said in his deposition will make it easier for you to compare your positions.
The opposing lawyer may ask you to validate or confirm a particularly strong opinion of the other expert. If you agree with it, that's fine. If you perceive some flaw or weakness, incorporate that observation into your answer. And if you disagree with the opinions expressed for any reason, you will have the added benefit of a recent rereading to help you discuss the differences between his opinion and yours.
Use post-its when rereading depositions to temporarily mark certain pages that you want to discuss with your retaining lawyer, or comment on during the trial. If in reviewing your notes, recordings, photographs, and other materials you determine that a visit to the actual sites you originally reviewed is essential to your testimony, even if those sites involve considerable time or distance, make that clear to your attorney. generally, this requires both planning and approval from various people. The sooner you make known such a need, the better will be the chan
If you do your homework and conduct your expert investigation well, and nothing new has been introduced in evidence, then you probably will not have a different opinion at trial.
During this final review, you should also reread the other expert's deposition and discuss his opinions with your lawyer, even though you will have done this now when you originally went through it. You can reiterate and discuss the particular strengths and weaknesses of the opinions, and develop a joint trial strategy. Knowing what areas to concentrate on during trial to highlight your strengths and the other expert's weaknesses will help your attorney's presentation of the case. It will also help you when you are on the stand. And refreshing your memory about what the other expert said in his deposition will make it easier for you to compare your positions.
The opposing lawyer may ask you to validate or confirm a particularly strong opinion of the other expert. If you agree with it, that's fine. If you perceive some flaw or weakness, incorporate that observation into your answer. And if you disagree with the opinions expressed for any reason, you will have the added benefit of a recent rereading to help you discuss the differences between his opinion and yours.
Use post-its when rereading depositions to temporarily mark certain pages that you want to discuss with your retaining lawyer, or comment on during the trial. If in reviewing your notes, recordings, photographs, and other materials you determine that a visit to the actual sites you originally reviewed is essential to your testimony, even if those sites involve considerable time or distance, make that clear to your attorney. generally, this requires both planning and approval from various people. The sooner you make known such a need, the better will be the chan
During this final review, you should also reread the other expert's deposition and discuss his opinions with your lawyer, even though you will have done this now when you originally went through it. You can reiterate and discuss the particular strengths and weaknesses of the opinions, and develop a joint trial strategy. Knowing what areas to concentrate on during trial to highlight your strengths and the other expert's weaknesses will help your attorney's presentation of the case. It will also help you when you are on the stand. And refreshing your memory about what the other expert said in his deposition will make it easier for you to compare your positions.
The opposing lawyer may ask you to validate or confirm a particularly strong opinion of the other expert. If you agree with it, that's fine. If you perceive some flaw or weakness, incorporate that observation into your answer. And if you disagree with the opinions expressed for any reason, you will have the added benefit of a recent rereading to help you discuss the differences between his opinion and yours.
Use post-its when rereading depositions to temporarily mark certain pages that you want to discuss with your retaining lawyer, or comment on during the trial. If in reviewing your notes, recordings, photographs, and other materials you determine that a visit to the actual sites you originally reviewed is essential to your testimony, even if those sites involve considerable time or distance, make that clear to your attorney. generally, this requires both planning and approval from various people. The sooner you make known such a need, the better will be the chances that you will secure that site revisit.
If you are representing a defendant or plaintiff who owns or manages the site in question, it will be easy to gain re-access to refresh your memories. But if the other side controls access, they may not grant you an additional site visit. However, if enough time remains before trial, and if any new evidence has been introduced since your previous visit, it becomes more likely that you will be allowed re-access to the site.
Judd Robbins has been an internationally recognized expert witness since 1986 in the US and in the UK. He has testified in State and Federal courts and has been featured as a testifying computer forensics expert on MSNBC, Court TV, and Tech TV. His cases range widely from intellectual property infringement to murder. He has been a best-selling author of more than 30 training and computer books and has created more than 25 training DVDs and videos. In 2010, his book "Expert Witness Training" was published by Presentation Dynamics. Robbins has advanced degrees from UC Berkeley and the University of Michigan, has been an Information Systems manager and an Education Systems manager, and consults in both computer and legal issues. Learn more about Mr. Robbins and his Expert Witness Training materials at http://www.juddrobbins.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Judd_Robbins
The opposing lawyer may ask you to validate or confirm a particularly strong opinion of the other expert. If you agree with it, that's fine. If you perceive some flaw or weakness, incorporate that observation into your answer. And if you disagree with the opinions expressed for any reason, you will have the added benefit of a recent rereading to help you discuss the differences between his opinion and yours.
Use post-its when rereading depositions to temporarily mark certain pages that you want to discuss with your retaining lawyer, or comment on during the trial. If in reviewing your notes, recordings, photographs, and other materials you determine that a visit to the actual sites you originally reviewed is essential to your testimony, even if those sites involve considerable time or distance, make that clear to your attorney. generally, this requires both planning and approval from various people. The sooner you make known such a need, the better will be the chances that you will secure that site revisit.
If you are representing a defendant or plaintiff who owns or manages the site in question, it will be easy to gain re-access to refresh your memories. But if the other side controls access, they may not grant you an additional site visit. However, if enough time remains before trial, and if any new evidence has been introduced since your previous visit, it becomes more likely that you will be allowed re-access to the site.
Judd Robbins has been an internationally recognized expert witness since 1986 in the US and in the UK. He has testified in State and Federal courts and has been featured as a testifying computer forensics expert on MSNBC, Court TV, and Tech TV. His cases range widely from intellectual property infringement to murder. He has been a best-selling author of more than 30 training and computer books and has created more than 25 training DVDs and videos. In 2010, his book "Expert Witness Training" was published by Presentation Dynamics. Robbins has advanced degrees from UC Berkeley and the University of Michigan, has been an Information Systems manager and an Education Systems manager, and consults in both computer and legal issues. Learn more about Mr. Robbins and his Expert Witness Training materials at http://www.juddrobbins.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Judd_Robbins