Expert Witness Blog

In When the Phone Rings ... Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC writes:

Consultants and expert witnesses are more used to answering questions than asking them. When the phone rings, there may be an attorney or prospective client on the other end of the line. He or she poses questions to the consultant or expert, trying to gauge whether there is a good “fit” between the client’s needs and what the practitioner can offer in the way of experience and expertise.

After answering prospective clients’ questions, effective consultants and expert witnesses may have some queries of their own. In fact, they should. Here are 12 questions that can form the basis of an effective fact-gathering process which unearths aspects of a case to help the consultant and expert witness gauge the degree of fit.

(4) What is the key issue or issues for which you need an expert? This is what I call framing the issue. Attorneys often do what I call a “data vomit,” spewing facts over the phone. Often, it is easy to lose sight of the forest for all the trees. Yes, you need an overview and a lay of the land. At some point — off the meter, of course — you may need to diplomatically ask counsel, “On what issue exactly might you need my opinion?” This steers the attorney and the discussion to an outcome-oriented conclusion. You may find that the issue is outside of your realm of expertise. If so, best to know that now. Maybe you know of another expert who could be a better fit. Alternatively, you might find that the issue is right in your “sweet spot” of expertise. If you let counsel meander interminably, his or her need may not be clear. Do not be shy about asking, diplomatically.

Kevin M. Quinley is a leading authority on insurance issues, including risk management, claims, bad faith, coverages and litigation management. He is the author of more than 600 articles and 10 books. You can reach him through http://www.insuranceexpertnetwork.com/.

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In When the Phone Rings ... Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance claims expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC writes:

Consultants and expert witnesses are more used to answering questions than asking them. When the phone rings, there may be an attorney or prospective client on the other end of the line. He or she poses questions to the consultant or expert, trying to gauge whether there is a good “fit” between the client’s needs and what the practitioner can offer in the way of experience and expertise. After answering prospective clients’ questions, effective consultants and expert witnesses may have some queries of their own. In fact, they should. Here are 12 questions that can form the basis of an effective fact-gathering process which unearths aspects of a case to help the consultant and expert witness gauge the degree of fit:
(3) Who is the opposing party? (Any conflict?) You can avoid wasting time if you find out up front that you have a conflict, or clear the decks for a possible retention by confirming that you don’t. As an example, I was recently approached about the possibility of serving as an expert witness concerning an insurance coverage dispute. The dispute was between a large medical device manufacturer and one of its excess insurers. I have never represented the medical company, but I do own shares of its stock. I disclosed this quickly to the inquiring attorneys. Neither they (nor I) feel it is a conflict, but I would rather have them make that call early on.

Kevin M. Quinley is a leading authority on insurance issues, including risk management, claims, bad faith, coverages and litigation management. He is the author of more than 600 articles and 10 books. You can reach him through http://www.insuranceexpertnetwork.com/.

In When the Phone Rings ... Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance claims expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC writes:

Consultants and expert witnesses are more used to answering questions than asking them. When the phone rings, there may be an attorney or prospective client on the other end of the line. He or she poses questions to the consultant or expert, trying to gauge whether there is a good “fit” between the client’s needs and what the practitioner can offer in the way of experience and expertise. After answering prospective clients’ questions, effective consultants and expert witnesses may have some queries of their own. In fact, they should. Here are 12 questions that can form the basis of an effective fact-gathering process which unearths aspects of a case to help the consultant and expert witness gauge the degree of fit:
(2) Do you represent the plaintiff or the defendant? This can be useful to know if you are trying to “balance” your practice and representation between plaintiffs and defendants. If you can strike a balance, you better the odds against opposing counsel painting you as a biased gun for hire. For example, thus far my insurance claim practice in litigation support has been split almost evenly down the middle — half for policyholders and half for insurers. If you have a preference and comfort level in representing one particular side in your area of expertise, this question brings that factor to the surface, inviting you to weigh it when deciding whether the case is a good fit with your interests and expertise.

Kevin M. Quinley is a leading authority on insurance issues, including risk management, claims, bad faith, coverages and litigation management. He is the author of more than 600 articles and 10 books. You can reach him through http://www.insuranceexpertnetwork.com/.

In When the Phone Rings ... Twelve Questions for Prospective Expert Witness Assignments, insurance claims expert witness Kevin M. Quinley, CPCU, ARM, AIC writes:

Consultants and expert witnesses are more used to answering questions than asking them. When the phone rings, there may be an attorney or prospective client on the other end of the line. He or she poses questions to the consultant or expert, trying to gauge whether there is a good “fit” between the client’s needs and what the practitioner can offer in the way of experience and expertise. After answering prospective clients’ questions, effective consultants and expert witnesses may have some queries of their own. In fact, they should. Here are 12 questions that can form the basis of an effective fact-gathering process which unearths aspects of a case to help the consultant and expert witness gauge the degree of fit:
(1) What does the case involve? This is a threshold question to assess whether the subject
matter of the case falls within your area of expertise. If you are a nephrologist and the issue
involves hematology, this is a tip-off that the caller may need a different expert. If you are an authority on agent errors and omissions but the case involves an underwriting mistake, it may not lodge in your “sweet spot.” Best for you to know this before investing time burrowing down fruitless rabbit trails. Or maybe the answer will confirm that the matter is well within your wheelhouse.

Kevin M. Quinley is a leading authority on insurance issues, including risk management, claims, bad faith, coverages and litigation management. He is the author of more than 600 articles and 10 books. You can reach him through http://www.insuranceexpertnetwork.com/.

In Successfully Locating A Business, zoning and land use expert witness John J. Wallace writes on a retailer's biggest challenge:

Spend time in the center, to take note of who is there during the day, in the evening and on the weekends. Pay attention to the clothes shoppers wear and to the cars they drive. Also read over the shopping center’s own surveys and studies. The sum of these impressions and data gathered should give you a reasonable idea of the trade area and the true shopper demographics.

In analyzing its trade area, shipping center managers often commission surveys. The typical result is a demographic profile indicating, for example, that the "average shopper" is a 44-year-old woman who lives within five miles of the center...and so on. Such a study may be of limited help in selecting a retail site. A more detailed view of a trade area reflects an understanding of lifestyles and how these change over time.

In evaluating a center, it is worth asking, "Who are the people shopping here?" Will they really be spending money at your store? It is only a starting point to know that a mall targets "households within a 10-mile radius, with an average income of $75,000 per year." The fact is that all households earning $75,000 are not alike in their tastes and needs. Take a single young professional, a retired couple and a working couple with three children. These three households all may have identical incomes -- but they will spend their money very differently!

Trademark expert witness William D. Neal is Senior Executive Officer at SDR Consulting and in Modeling Brand Equity, he writes on branding:

Consumers may also see a particular brand name as a contract. A brand's name may reduce consumers' sense of uncertainty, allowing them to purchase uncertainty reduction, or trust, thus improving their sense of value.

Promotion of a brand can address either price, tangible brand attributes or intrinsic brand attributes (equities). Brand equity is communicated using consistent visual cues and consistent messages, allowing the consumer to quickly and efficiently distinguish between brands and their intrinsic product attributes. As a purchaser considers the tangible product features in concert with brand equity (and price), they arrive at a set of products in a category which they will consider for purchase (i.e. their consideration set). Thus, a brand's equity is somewhat dependent on effective communications to the target market(s) and brand equity can often be improved to some extent with improved effectiveness of communications. However, communications alone cannot overcome a reputation for poor product quality, social irresponsibility, a lack of trust, and so on.

Insurance expert witness Jim Leatzow has been educating and insuring professionals about the risks to their businesses for twenty years. At Leatzow.com, he offers a glossary of jargon associated with risk management. Two of the terms defined are:

Claims-Made Insurance
A policy written to cover claims "made" or brought during the present policy in effect, regardless as to when the "event" occurred, but subject to several terms including the "coverage period". The coverage period begins with a Retroactive Coverage Date and continues to the latest Effective Date. If work was performed under a prior policy and those dates have been accepted by the replacement policy through the Retro Date, then the successor policy accepts the former work risk and exposure. Claims brought outside of that time period are generally excluded and denied. Prior policies that have been replaced will also deny coverage as coverage only applies to the policy in force at the time the "claim is made".

Grace Period
Extra time given to renew a life or health insurance policy. Grace periods DO NOT APPLY to property and casualty insurance.

In The Attitude "Alarm Clock" wrongful termination expert witness Charles Conine writes on hiring and motivating employees.

It's all about mental attitude... When hiring, promoting, training and yes, even disciplining, watch the candidate or employee's attitude. Some, as we all know, are timid about showing they care; with encouragement, however, they blossom. Others are natural leaders and will pick up every job you throw their way, do it, then ask for the next assignment. Others seem wooden, disinterested, unfocused; this group, needless to say, may not be your best new hires. You're reaching them too late...

All great performers possess an attitude "alarm clock". They know when it's time to add effort and when to let others take the lead... Can we teach employees to possess an attitude "alarm clock?" The subject of much debate, this is. What is very clear, however, is that great attitudes are catchy, and where one resides, others will follow.

In How to Create a Marketing Strategy, marketing expert witness Steven Londre gives sound advice:

In creating a marketing strategy, divide markets into meaningful customer groups (market segmentation), choose which customer groups to serve (target marketing), and create marketing offers that best serve targeted customers (positioning)...

Here's a recommendation: Make your marketing, advertising and promotion different than your competitors. Be unique with your product mix. Successfully position your product by looking at product attributes, benefits, quality/price, high tech and high touch. And remember your target customer. Customer service is far more important than most marketing consultants give it credit. Company and brand positioning should be summed up in a positioning statement. The statement should follow this form: To (target market and need) our (brand or store or service) is (concept) that (point of difference).

A reminder from expert witness marketing consultant, strategist & coach Rosalie Hamilton:

Expert Witness Websites - Contact Info?
I hate to bring this up again, but --- please include contact information on your website! I had a friend contact me recently for help in finding an expert witness in a particular area of expertise. I found four and went to their websites. Two (TWO of the four!) had NO contact information whatsoever. One had a "Contact" form with several lines of required information. Only one had a phone number, address, and email listed.

An attorney is not going to take the time to search for how to reach you; he or she is simply going to move to the next expert on the list. Nor will they fill out a "Contact" form.

The point of having a website is to help potential clients find you when they need your services. If they can't then contact you and retain you, why bother?

Writing an article is one of the best educational marketing tools available to you as an expert witness. In deciding what topic about which to write, answer questions such as these in your article:

• What are the key issues in your field, and how should an expert be able to address them?
• What should an attorney know when they have a case in this area?
• What things should be sought in discovery? What documents or records should be requested?
• Are there chain-of-custody issues? Sequencing issues? Scope of work issues?
• What standards of care should be used?
• What potential defendants should be identified?

In addition, make it easy for attorneys to know what questions to ask when retaining an expert, and provide information in your article that will lead them to contacting you (without making direct references to yourself). Some questions you could provide answers to include:

• Are their specific experiences an expert in your field should have?
• Is there specialized training the expert should have in this area?
• Are there specific organizations to which the expert should belong?
• Are there certain designation or certificates an expert should have?
• Should the expert have published in this area?
• Are there “specialist” designations in your field of which an attorney should know?
• How is an expert in your field licensed? Is the license good for all 50 states? Are there a certain number of years of education one must complete?
• Are there common misconceptions in your field? For example, some attorneys might not realize that a chiropractor is not necessarily a medical doctor.
• What should competent experts in your field be able to do? Site inspections? Examinations? Create exhibits? Record review?
• What type of expert should an attorney avoid?

Attorneys will likely save such articles that answer these questions, and use them for future reference.

In 14 Rules For Working With An Expert Economist, expert witness Dr. Jerome M. Staller offers "rules" to follow that will help your economics expert witness do the best job he or she can for you and your client.

Never cross examine the opposing expert in deposition. Instead, inquire and learn. A deposition should not a warm-up for trial: You want to learn as much as possible and not tip your hand. Aggressive questioning during depositions is almost always counterproductive

Never hide information from your expert. Chances are, whatever facts you withhold from your expert will be known to the opposing side, which could lead to devastating cross.