Expert Witness Blog

DNA expert witnesses may give opinions regarding serology, DNA testing, forensic DNA, DNA fingerprinting, and related matters. This week, the US Supreme Court ruled that police may take DNA samples from people arrested in connection with serious crimes. Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote: “A suspect’s criminal history is a critical part of his identity that officers should know when processing him for detention.”

Slip opinion Maryland v. King: http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/12-207_d18e.pdf

In Workers’ Compensation Underwriting Philosophy as Partnership, workers compensation expert witness David L. Stegall, CPCU, ARM, ARe, RPA, writes:

An underwriting philosophy is the logical analysis of the principles and processes underlying the conduct, thought and knowledge used in selecting and assuming the risk of another party.

Philosophy attempts to draw unity from diversity. It attempts to deduce conclusions (leading to unity) based on overall observations, both direct and indirect (diversity). The unity we are attempting to achieve is profitable business. The diversity is all of the risks, which we, as a company, have the capacity and authority to assume. Selection is the key. Underwriting is a process of selection.

Money laundering expert witnesses may provide reports and expert testimony on anti-racketeering law, organized crime, and embezzlement, as well as related topics. In the news, www.miamiherald,com reports that 7 people have been charged in the biggest money-laundering scheme in U.S. history. Liberty Reserve is accused of laundering $8B over the past seven years. The company’s principals were arrested in Costa Rica, Spain and New York. Based in Costa Rica, Liberty Reserve was a digital currency service that allowed users to register and transfer money.

In Real Estate Management, property management expert witness Ms. Ann E. Reisch, CCIM, CPM, RPA, writes:

Real estate management, also known as property management, is the specialized field within the real estate industry that supervises the operations of a property in accordance with the owner’s objectives. A real estate manager is responsible for the physical and financial operations of a property or group of properties. Managing a property is the same as running a business and expertise is required in the areas of finance, accounting, economics, marketing, customer relations, personnel, risk management, law and organizational operations. Successfully managing properties encompasses all of these areas as well as other specialized and technical areas of expertise.

Regardless of whether a building is designed to live, work or shop in, the fundamental principles of real estate management remain the same. Investment properties have tenants to interact with on a regular basis, maintenance requirements to continuously manage, and financial operations to meticulously oversee. Whether the property is an apartment community, an office building, a retail shopping center, an industrial warehouse, a parking garage or any other type of property, proficient management is required for success.

In Property & Casualty Insurance Procurement & Litigation (Ten Recurring Themes Every Lawyer Should Know) insurance expert witness David L. Stegall, CPCU, ARM, ARe, RPA, of Risk Consulting & Expert Services writes on ten recurring themes that often lead to litigation. Attorneys either dealing in insurance procurement litigation issues or with clients who purchase insurance may want to consider these ten themes:

Theme 9 of 10 Coinsurance is one of the most common insurance purchase misunderstandings. The coinsurance clause/penalty is a stated understanding and agreement within most property policies that requires the property owner to purchase insurance for a certain percentage of the full value of the property. The trade-off is, if the property is insured to the required value, the insurance company will use the lowest possible rates for calculating premiums. However, if the property is not insured to the required amount, then partial claims (versus total losses) will be paid in a ratio of the amount insured divided by the amount that should have been insured multiplied by the partial loss. The Co-Insurance Penalty formula is: the amount insured, divided by the amount required to be insured, multiplied by the partial loss amount, equals the claim payment amount.

Example: Property is purchased for $120,000 (includes the land, which is not insured). The building on the property is 25 years old and has a replacement cost value of $100,000. There is a mortgage on the property for $50,000, and the mortgage company requires fire insurance coverage of at least that same amount. The owner buys a fire insurance policy with a limit of $50,000 and the policy has an 80% coinsurance clause. During the policy period, a fire occurs causing $20,000 in fire damage. How much will the insurance company pay? Answer: $12,500 (not $20,000.) Why? Amount insured ($50,000) divided by the minimum amount for which it should have been insured for ($80,000, which is 80% of $100,000) multiplied by the amount of the partial fire loss ($20,000) equals $12,500. This is a relatively easy calculation but a concept that is almost never understood by a claimant at the time of a loss.

In Radiology Over The Past 40 Years, radiology expert witness Jordan Haber M.D. F.A.C.R., writes:

Radiology in the 1960s was considered an ancillary specialty divorced and segregated from the mainstream of practice. Internists and surgeons very frequently would have little but polite regard to the input of the radiologist. As a consequence, the Radiologist was positioned all too frequently in the basements of hospitals. Relegated to locations far from where the clinical practice hotspots are, their physical location in the hospital reflected the disinterest that the clinicians had in radiographic input. Also, stereotypically, the personality profile of the radiologist also frequently reflected his relatively passive role in clinical care. While the general surgeon often had a bravado characteristic of an outgoing engaging clinician, the Radiologist would be construed as a relatively withdrawn doctor either incapable of or not interested in interpersonal contact. He would be thought of as sitting in a dark room filled with view boxes and x-rays, avoiding the light of day and of active clinical direct practice. Both Radiologists and Psychiatrists were very peripheral from clinical care in the late 1960′s.

Now, 40 years have passed. Currently, Radiology is one of the most sought-after subspecialties in medicine. Residency positions in Radiology are only offered to medical students in the top 25% of their class. Just a few years ago, such positions were primarily and solely offered to those medical students accepted in the National Honor Society (AOA). The Radiologist, who was portrayed historically as a relatively withdrawing participant in healthcare, frequently now sits on executive boards of hospitals and rises to president of the medical staff. His leadership role in many hospitals, both academic and community, reflects the new realization that Radiology is no longer ancillary but integral in the algorithm of outpatient care. No longer is the Radiology suite in the basement. It is now located adjacent and sometimes within the emergency room, reflecting its vital importance in diagnostics and treatment development. It is now understood that Radiology’s input is critical to virtually all of the medical subspecialties.

Environmental toxicology expert witnesses may opine regarding toxic chemicals exposure, PCBs, forensic toxicology, and related matters. In the news, an Italian study found a link between certain chemicals and Parkinson’s disease. health.usnews.com reports their findings: “Prolonged exposure to pesticides, bug and weed killers, and solvents appears to raise the risk for developing Parkinson’s disease, a new study says.” Researchers reviewed more than 100 earlier studies regarding exposure and the risk of Parkinson’s.

In STANDARD OF CARE: What Standard, Who Cares?, oncology expert witness Dr. Ronald Citron writes:

A hundred years ago, one man could master the cumulative medical knowledge of all humanity. Today, one man could spend a lifetime reading the new findings published in a single year. We doctors learn it ‘all’ in medical school. But, of course, that is not enough. We must keep up with the continuing flow of new data. How do practicing physicians manage the torrential onslaught of new information inherent in the modern age? How do they find and learn the information? How do they integrate new findings into their daily activity? How often does this happen? What mechanisms for learning are there?

Medicine mandates education for doctors be they Chaired Professors at a University or generalists. It is the responsibility of every physician to log a required number of hours of education per year.