Expert Witness Blog

Transportation construction expert witnesses may provide reports and testimony regarding design, surveying, construction, operation, and maintenance of highways, roadways, bridges, and tunnels, as well as associated matters. In the news, a bridge on I-5 near Mount Vernon, WA, collapsed after a semi-trailer truck hauling over-sized drilling equipment struck the bridge’s trusses. The 55 year old bridge is rated a “fracture critical” design – the failure of just one part could cause the entire bridge to collapse. According to the US DOT website:

The bridge carries an estimated 71,000 vehicles each day and is a major commercial route between Washington and Canada. Approximately 11 percent of the vehicles are commercial trucks transporting goods between the two countries.

Patent protection expert witnesses may write reports on software patents, invention patents, patentability requirements, license agreements, and correlated matters. In Startups and Patent Trolls, Santa Clara University Assistant Professor of Law Colleen V. Chien writes:

Abstract:

While patent assertion entities (“PAEs” or patent “trolls”) have received a lot of attention, little of it has focused on the distributional impacts of their demands. The impact of PAEs on startups is crucial, because startups contribute to job creation and innovation, making them potential targets and sources of patents. To assess the impact of trolls on startups, I analyzed a comprehensive database of patent litigations from 2006 to the present, conducted a non-random survey of 223 tech company startups, 79 of which had received a demand, and interviewed nearly twenty entities with relevant knowledge of startup patent issues.

Physical therapy expert witnesses found here may testify regarding the use of therapeutic exercise, manipulations, massage therapy, body therapy, and bodywork. In Special Considerations in Cases of Trauma, The Ethics of Touch, a book on ethics, sexual trauma, and professional boundaries, Dr. Ben E. Benjamin writes:

On average, one of every five clients a practitioner sees has a history of trauma or abuse. Whether or not you are aware of it, in a large percentage of your sessions, the client in your treatment room may be a survivor. Even the client might not know. To avoid ethical complications, every practitioner who uses touch needs basic knowledge about trauma and abuse survivors and a clear protocol for working with these particular clients.

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 7 of 10 Understand Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist (UM) coverage before it is needed. This coverage acts as the liability coverage for persons who injure you, your family, your employees or anyone driving your car with your permission when the person who causes injury either does not have liability insurance or is underinsured. Various states handle the issue of UM coverage differently, and apart from the 12 states that provide so-called ‘no-fault” coverage with Personal Injury Protection (PIP), insurance buyers seldom purchase adequate Automobile UM Liability Limits.

With this in mind, the minimum limit an automobile policy provides is typically woefully inadequate. It is estimated that 15 percent of all drivers on the road are without insurance and even more have minimum limits. In some states, this average percentage can be doubled.

Real estate damages expert witnesses may give expert opinions on a wide range of issues including flood damage, hurricane damage, damage impact and related matters. In Sandy-Related Suits Against Co-ops, Condos Face Unique Challenges, the New York Law Journal reports on lawsuits filed by condo and co-op owners in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Owners are suing their building management over failure to protect their property in the disaster. NYLJ says the plaintiffs face a unique difficulty. “How can they show that the managers failed to prepare adequately for a disaster that no one had seen before?”

Explosions expert witnesses may consult regarding flammable materials, chemical explosions, and combustion. In the news, MailOnline reports that “a malfunctioning golf cart, faulty electrical system or even arson” could have led to the fire that triggered the deadly explosion of a fertilizer plant in West, Texas. Officials have yet to find the cause of a blast that killed 14 people, including 12 first responders. The blast formed a crater 93′ wide by 10′ deep.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/.

Patent litigation expert witnesses may consult and testify on patent prosecution, patent infringement, design patents, exclusive rights, and more. The Santa Clara University School of Law has released a study entitled Best Practices in Patent Litigation Survey which describes how patents have become a major part of business planning. Reuters reports that the survey discusses “patent assertion entities,” which are companies that do not make anything themselves.

Scholarly papers by Assistant Professor Colleen V. Chien,

Santa Clara University – School of Law. including Startups and Patent Trolls may be found here:

Fire expert witnesses may consult on wildfires, fire engineering, fire accelerants, fire safety engineering, and fire patterns, among other topics. The Salt Lake Tribune reports that there could be “another historic wildfire season” and significantly less funds to work with due to budget cuts from the sequester.

Tom Vilsack said the Agriculture Department will try to manage large fires using monies budgeted for prevention in order to pay for fire fighting.

Read more: http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/world/56310072-68/fire-fires-acres-burned.html.csp

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:

The insurance application process now requires more attention. There was a time, in the not too distant past, when most applications for property and casualty insurance did not require the signature of the insurance buyer. Agents routinely completed applications and underwriters readily accepted them without anyone’s signature on the application. This custom and practice is no more. Insurance applications have become more than just tools to gather underwriting information to determine the eligibility of the applicant for coverage and for premium determination purposes. The necessity for thoroughness and precision has greatly increased. It is more than appropriate and appreciated by the underwriter for the applicant to provide supplemental answers and explanations along with the standardized application. These relatively recent changes in the usual and customary practices of making an application for insurance can make the difference between having a claim covered and not having it covered. An ambiguity or misunderstanding can become an allegation of misrepresentation, which can lead to no coverage at all, rather than just a possible increase in premiums. Policy rescission and voiding policies ab initio are on the rise, along with underwriters using application information as “Warrants” thereby making the application a part of the policy (which has always been the case with life insurance policy applications).

These developments make providing accurate information to underwriters more than just important. Accurate information becomes the basis for the existence of the contract itself and adds an increased threshold to the concept of “utmost good-faith” which is the traditional basis of all insurance relationships.