Expert Witness Blog

In Ask the Expert: How the Securities Foreclosure Mess Happened, variable rate mortgages expert witness Maher E. Soliman writes:

It maybe the FDIC and lax oversight causing the unbelievable reemergence of banking and institutional investment activity in partnership. Their triparty collective efforts emerge in direct opposition to the spirit and intent of FIERREA legislation.

FIERREA was provided by the US legislature to expressly deny banks the capacity to used insured deposits to invest in junk classes of bonds disguised as securities. Devaluation of Bank equity and value once again becomes a reality.

Gas stations expert witnesses may opine on service stations, filling stations, gasoline, petrol, and diesel fuel. Here the California Service Station & Automotive Repair Association writes on ENHANCED INSPECTION PROGRAM FOR VST (Vapor Systems Technologies Inc.) NOZZLES:

On July 26, the Air Resources Board (ARB) held a meeting with industry associations and representatives to clarify expectations of the Enhanced Inspection Program that will mitigate gasoline spray incidents by VST nozzles.

A few CSSARA members have shared specific issues that they have had concerning customer complaints about pumping gas without hold-open nozzle clips, and about VST removing clips without prior approval in an attempt to fix the problem. Dealers have said that they have had VST reattach the clips to satisfy customers. The ARB is aware of these complaints and is exploring steps to be taken to alleviate the problems.

Transportation rules and regulations expert witnesses may opine on federal motor carrier safety regulations and the Department of Transportation (DOT), as well as other issues. Trucking experts at the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) recently issued a press release, coming out in support of the newly proposed Motor Carrier Protection Act of 2010.

The act would establish significant penalties for violations of broker regulations, including unlimited liability for freight charges for conducting brokerage activities without a license or bond. Additionally, if the bill is passed into law, brokers and freight forwarders will be required to renew their operating authority annually and FMCSA will be required to revoke operating authority that is not renewed annually. Revenue generated from the renewal fees would then be dedicate to FMCSA’s oversight and enforcement of broker regulations. The bill establishes strict guidelines on companies that provide brokers with surety bonds, as well as guidelines on how they administer these bonds. The bill clarifies that trucking companies must have a broker’s or freight forwarder’s license and an appropriate bond in addition to their motor carrier operating authority to arrange freight for another carrier for compensation.

Read more: http://www.truckertrucker.com/.

In Ask the Expert: How the Securities Foreclosure Mess Happened, mortgages expert witness Maher E. Soliman writes:

With the recent collapse in lending and drain on market liquidity, property values also collapsed.The events hold a negative effect on bank’s assets and likewise the capital value of all member banks and FSB’s. This is the current condition that further reduces banking liquidity.

If you return to 1989 and the passage of FIERREA, you recall how the legislation made it unlawful for a bank to hold junk bonds as bank assets. It was a decision coupled with the government electing to close (versus to sell off) the largest market maker of junk bonds at the time.

Video capture expert witnesses may opine on digital multimedia evidence and streaming media, as well as related topics. Definitions include:

Multimedia Evidence Analog or digital media, including, but not limited to, film, tape, magnetic and optical media, and/or the information contained therein. NOTE: The term Digital Multimedia Evidence (DME) used in this document refers specifically to multimedia evidence in a digital form.

Forensic Video Analysis Forensic Video Analysis is the scientific examination, comparison and/or evaluation of video in legal matters.

In the abstract for Which CEO Characteristics and Abilities Matter?, Steven N. Kaplan, Mark M. Klebanov, and Morten Sorensen write:

We exploit a unique dataset to study individual characteristics of CEO candidates for companies involved in buyout and venture capital transactions and relate these characteristics to subsequent corporate performance. CEO candidates vary along two primary dimensions: one that captures general ability and another that contrasts communication and interpersonal skills with execution skills. Subsequent performance is positively related to general ability and to execution skills. The findings expand our view of CEO characteristics and types relative to previous studies.

Finance expert witnesses may opine on CEOs, buyouts, venture capital, and other finance related issues.

Biotechnology means any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use. For instance, biotechnology is applied to improve or facilitate cellular processes such as energy metabolism, gene transfer between unrelated species, or the engineering of enzymes for large scale production of drugs.

Blue biotechnology is concerned with the application of molecular biological methods to marine and freshwater organisms. It involves the use of these organisms, and their derivatives, for purposes such as increasing seafood supply and safety, controlling the proliferation of noxious water-borne organisms, and developing new drugs. Biotechnology expert witnesses may testify on antibiotics, pharmaceuticals, biochemical engineering, algae, etc.

Read more: biologyonline.org.