Psychiatry expert witness Dr. Gerard Figurelli testified Monday in the defense case of Police Officer Joseph Rios III. Figurelli testified that medical records indicate alleged beating victim Ronnie Holloway suffered from a host of schizophrenic symptoms through the years that included violence while prosecutors argue that Ronnie Hollaway was the victim of the Passaic police officer’s excessive use of force.
Read more: northjersey.com.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash, (ND Georgia) refused to disqualify several experts and attorneys in an antitrust litigation stemming from a patent dispute over AndroGel, a medication used to increase testosterone production. The plaintiffs, direct purchasers or the medication, wish to retain Dr. Bozena Michniak-Kohn and Dr. Howard Maibach as expert witnesses in topical drug delivery.
In 2000, the Food and Drug Administration approved Solvay Pharmaceuticals’ application for an exclusive three-year license to sell AndroGel for the treatment of male hypogonadism, a medical condition in which the body fails to produce normal levels of testosterone.
Read more: courthousenews.com.
In Creating a Sales Presence in the Global Marketplace, marketing strategy expert witness Glen Balzer writes:
Companies operating only in their home market or in a limited number of global markets understandably worry about entering a new foreign market. Risks are many and opportunities for problems are enormous. There is an additional risk of taking the corporate eye off the core business and revenue stream. What should a company planning to enter a foreign market do in order to protect itself from failure and improve its chances for success? A company can create an eight-step plan that includes:
1. Properly setting expectations 2. Developing a bank of resources 3. Studying local market norms 4. Hiring a country manager 5. Selecting a manufacturers’ representative 6. Negotiating a representative agreement 7. Preparing for fraud and scandal 8. Incorporating lessons from competitors
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo has called on a national construction expert to lead an independent review of the costly and long-running improvements project on the I-287 Cross Westchester Expressway.
Cuomo on June 8 said Peter M. Lehrer, chairman of Lehrer L.L.C., a leading New York City construction consultant, will work on the project pro bono, with other experts to be retained as needed.
Read more: westfaironline.com.
U.S. Rep. Scott Rigell thinks he might have an answer to the erosion problems that threaten to wash away Tangier Island: anchor old barges along the shoreline, without any cost to taxpayers. The fishing mecca in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay is losing between 4 and 12 feet a year to rising sea levels, exposure to storms, and sinking land. Scott Hardaway, a coastal engineering expert with the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, said the Eastern Shore already has marine vessels acting as breakwaters – concrete ships anchored off Kiptopeke State Park.
Read more: hamptonroads.com.
In EXPERT PAY DISCUSSION, Rosalie Hamilton, Legal Marketing Strategist for Expert Consultants, writes:
My recommendation is to use an agreement that lays out simply and clearly, at a minimum, your rates for review, deposition, court appearance, travel time, and expenses, as well as your required retainer. I also recommend that you include a cancellation policy so you are not left holding an empty bag along with an empty waiting room or office when deposition or court appearances are postponed or cancelled. There should be signature lines for you and the client and dates for both signatures.
In your engagement agreement, you can also choose to spell out your expected payment schedule and other details. You can specify additional elements as venue in case of disagreement, although some experts do not wish to bring up the negative.
Homeowner’s insurance expert witnesses may write reports and testify on insurance claims, homeowners liability protection, hazard insurance, and associated areas of expertise. At Missouri Insurance Lawyer Blog, the law firm of Tatlow, Gump, Faiella & Wheelan LLC, write:
Many Missourians have experienced devastating losses as a result of the storms that have ravaged the southern portion of the state in recent weeks. Thousands of people will be filing insurance claims and we want to help make sure those claims are handled properly by explaining a few situations that could happen with your insurance claims. Here are just a few things to take into consideration:
1. Many insurance companies use a property damage estimating software program called Xactimate. Prices in the program are updated on a quarterly basis. When a large storm strikes it is not uncommon for labor and materials prices in the area of the storm to increase, sometimes rapidly. As a result the prices in the Xactimate program may be outdated at the time of the storm because of the sudden increase in prices. Check with your insurer who uses this or similar programs to determine if they have updated their prices to reflect the increase in the prices immediately following the storm. If not, ask that they do so; otherwise your repair estimate may not accurately reflect the exact cost of repairs.
Trucking software expert witnesses may testify on log book validation, mapping software and more. In Opinion: Across the Great ELD Divide, Billy Woolsey, President Midwest Compliance Inc. writes on ELD regulation:
Large and small carriers increasingly find themselves on opposite sides of a widening gulf when the topic is electronic logging devices – particularly when the issue is whether or not ELDs should be required by government mandate.
Large carriers tend to support the ELD regulation that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has proposed. Smaller carriers, however, are less than thrilled by the possibility of such a mandate, unless the devices are required only as the result of a compliance review.
Commercial liability policies expert witnesses may opine on insurance claims, liability insurance and more. In Court of Appeals Rules on When Late Notice of a Claim Voids Coverage, Michael J. Rust writes:
On April 28, 2011, in Forshee v. Employers Mutual Casualty Company, the Georgia Court of Appeals found that a fact question existed as to whether Employers Mutual received timely notice of a claim arising out of a slip and fall at an insured convenience store. The Court overruled the trial court’s finding that the insured had not provided timely notice and decided that the issue was a factual dispute that a jury must decide. In its opinion, the Court established the standard to be considered by a trial court in a late notice case.
Read more: http://mjr-law.blogspot.com/.
Federal motor vehicle safety standards expert witnesses may write reports on crashworthiness, truck maintenance, and trucking and transportation rules and regulations. On their website, The O’Connell Law Firm, P.C. writes on dangerous truck drivers:
In late 2010, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) implemented an extensive new program to improve safety in the commercial trucking industry. Known as the Compliance, Safety, Accountability program, the initiative focuses on identifying and sanctioning trucking companies with track records of risky driving in order to prevent future trucking accidents.
The CSA program evaluates trucking companies and keeps track of individual drivers. But, even though individuals are monitored, gaps in the system may allow unsafe truckers to remain behind the wheel.
