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In Be a Better Expert Witness, marketing expert Rosalie Hamilton asks “What proactive steps will you take to be a better and more in-demand expert consultant?

Developing your practice and becoming a more effective expert consultant requires that you perform an honest assessment of yourself and your practice. Based on what you determine to be areas that need improvement, steps to take could include: honing your skills at case review, opinion report writing, testifying in deposition and court, and marketing your practice.

If you are new to providing services to attorneys and have not read The Expert Witness Handbook by Dan Poynter, an expert witness, this book would be a good choice. It presents an overview, along with practical, time-tested advice and examples.

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The Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC) of the American Trucking Associations will hold its 2010 Fall Meeting and TMCSuperTech2010 National Technician Skills Competition Sept. 20 to 23 at the Raleigh Convention Center in Raleigh, N.C. The meeting theme, Quality Control in Maintenance Operations, will be carried out through technical sessions covering management, training, product selection, regulations and the environment.

TMC, a technical council of American Trucking Associations, is North America’s premier technical society for truck equipment technology and maintenance professionals. TMC features a diverse membership of equipment managers, service-dealers, owner-operators, industry suppliers and manufacturers, educators, academia and others that support the trucking industry. Trucking industry expert witnesses may be found here: experts.

For more, see ATA.com.

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American Trucking Associations trucking policy experts met with three members of the National Transport Commission Australia on July 1 to discuss commonalities and challenges the trucking industry faces in each country. Representatives of both delegations talked about the need for increased infrastructure funding and the obstacles to increasing taxes. Other presentation topics included fuel economy standards and higher productivity vehicles, as well as economic indicators that track the health of the trucking industry.

The Australian visitors included NTC Chief Executive Nick Dimopoulos, Chair Greg Martin, and head of engineering and productivity Jose Arredondo. SVP of Policy and Regulatory Affairs Dave Osiecki, VP of Security and Operations Martin Rojas, VP and Environmental Counsel Glen Kedzie, Director of Highway Operations Darrin Roth, and Economist Tavio Headley represented ATA.

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Pesticides expert witness Allan Snyder; ACGIH, AIHA, SPCI, of AFC Forensic Consulting writes on the treatment and control of termites:

Treatment and control techniques vary depending on the species causing an infestation.

• Multiple colonies of the same species of termite or more than one species of termite can infest a building.

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In The Value of a Construction Expert Witness, William Gulya, Jr., construction expert witness and President & CEO, Middlesex Trenching Company, writes:

By its very nature, construction is unique in that construction projects, along with the laws governing construction, affect so many different kinds of parties — project owners, developers, financial lenders, architects, engineers, planners, designers, contractors, sub-contractors, etc. Consequently, an attorney working in a construction legal dispute will most likely require the assistance and expertise of one or more construction expert witnesses.

Whether the case concerns a small-scale private residence or a huge industrial or commercial venture, the technical aspects associated with the project are best assessed, analyzed and opined upon by someone with extensive knowledge of construction and experience in the field, and many construction attorneys regard their expert witnesses as indispensable.

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In THE REAL ESTATE CLIENT: VALUATION SERVES IMPORTANT MASTERS IN LITIGATION CASES, forensic accounting expert witness Richard M. Squar writes on the net asset value method:

The value of the partnership before considerations of discounts is determined by the net asset value method. The aggregate net asset value of the entire limited partnership is established by individually appraising each underlying asset taking into consideration liabilities at the valuation date. Assets and liabilities in a typical real estate limited partnership include cash, rents receivable, real estate properties, accounts payable, accrued expenses such as interest due on mortgages, mortgages, and refundable security deposits. The client’s limited partnership interest percentage is applied to the aggregate net asset value to determine the value of the interest before consideration of discounts.

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In A Square Peg in a Round Hole – Building Design v. Occupancy Use, products liability expert witness Robert L. Rowe, President of Pyrocop, Inc., writes:

Part 3

As you can see, this was a significant challenge for me as the building was not protected by a fire sprinkler system and the manner of storage was inappropriate for the building design. Without question, this was a distinct fire/life safety hazard that I could not allow to continue until the building was brought up to code. After contacting both the tenant and the property management company as well as spending hours upon hours reviewing the codes trying to come up with a reasonable solution to maintain a safe building and at the same time try to preserve their business, I just could not fit “a square peg in a round hole” without the landlord and tenant spending thousands of dollars to “make it work”.

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wrongful death expert witness Robert L. Rowe, President of Pyrocop, Inc., writes:

Part 2

A 30,000 square foot, nonsprinklered, 1950’s era commercial building in an industrial area was sitting vacant for some time which was “bleeding” money by the hour. There were several prospective tenants who inquired but, for one reason or the other, the building was not the right fit. Finally, an import export company looked at the facility and without hesitation, signed a lease and moved in. Had it not been for the City’s business license inspection program, I would have never known that building was occupied or being used.

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In A Square Peg in a Round Hole – Building Design v. Occupancy Use, fire expert witness Robert L. Rowe, President of Pyrocop, Inc., writes:

Part 1

During my tenure as Fire Marshal in the Los Angeles Area, I’ve encountered numerous challenges relating to fire and building code interpretations and application. Beyond popular belief, the responsibility of a fire code official does not stop at insuring the safety of the public and minimizing property loss.

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