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In Understanding How Materials Fail: Stress v. Fatigue, forensic engineering expert witness Clyde C. Richard, Ph.D., P.E., writes on material failure:

Today, in most product liability cases in the court system or with insurance companies, the alleged cause of the accident is either misuse or material failure. Accidents including people falling off ladders, chairs or bicycles and the failure of machinery and motorized vehicles can be caused by or contributed by material failure. Materials such as metals, plastics, ceramics and glass can fail immediately or breakdown over time through two different mechanisms: stress and fatigue.

Stress, or what some experts call a fracture, is when someone or something applies a load that exceeds the ultimate strength of a material. An example would be a tow hitch on a car that is rated for 3,000 lbs. and the user pulls a load of 9,000 lbs.

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In Treadmill Accidents: Allegations for Product Defects, equipment and machinery expert witness Clyde C. Richard, Ph.D., P.E., writes that treadmills continue to be one of the major causes of liability claims in the health club industry today and that accidents involving treadmills in homes are causing an increasing number of injuries as well. His company was retained to investigate a treadmill accident where the homeowner purchased a commercial treadmill and two years later set it up in a small confined space.

The plaintiff was exercising when they fainted, fell off the treadmill, was pushed to the rear and pinned against the wall, sustaining major injures as a result. The allegation in the complaint was that the manufacturer designed a defective product because it should have included a safety device other than the string pull or dead man switch that would protect a person who fell while exercising…

The engineer…obtained the installation guide and owner’s manual and determined that both had specific instructions to allow five to ten feet behind the treadmill for clearance in the event of a fall. A site inspection showed that the treadmill was installed with only 19 inches of clearance. A history of fainting revealed during the plaintiff’s deposition only heightened the importance of the manufacturer’s warnings. The insight and research of the engineer allowed the treadmill manufacturer to be dismissed from the case. Treadmills, like any other moving piece of equipment can be dangerous if the warning and safety precautions are not followed.

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In Managing Construction Quality, construction safety expert witness Pete Fowler describes how “the good old days” are gone and construction professionals are now living in a new world:

• Consumers expect increasing quality and decreasing prices in all products.

• The building industry is not keeping pace with the quality and price advances many industries are making.

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In Assessing the Truth: How Forensic Psychiatrists and Psychologists Evaluate Litigants, Dr. Mark Levy, a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and ADA expert writes:

Unlike a treating clinician whose mission is to alleviate suffering and, thus, when called to testify, is appropriately an advocate for his patient, the forensic psychiatrist and psychologist have a different mission: our task is to determine as accurately as possible what is objectively true with regard to diagnosis, the medical course, treatment and prognosis, based upon clinical evidence. Accurate diagnosis is all important. The other opinions such as course, prognosis and treatment flow from this.

Modern medicine is evidence-based and so too is modern forensic psychiatry. It is no longer enough for an expert to simply rely upon his authority and say, in effect, “I have been in practice for 30 plus years and have earned this and that degree and credential and honor, therefore what I say is true, is true because I say so.” Today, an expert must be prepared to answer the underlying question, “Upon what objective clinical evidence, Doctor, do you base your opinions and conclusions?”

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In Basic Characteristics And “Life” of Residential Mortgage Loans mortgages expert witness J. F. “Chip” Morrow writes:

In today’s real estate mortgage market, it is essential that the expert understand, be fully aware of, and cognizant of the entities involved and their roles in initiating, processing, underwriting and funding all types of prime and subprime residential mortgage loans including ones. In addition, the stages that a prime and subprime residential mortgage loans processes through during its “life” are also crucial…

A mortgage banker underwrites the risk involved in making a mortgage loan to determine whether the borrower satisfies the loan underwriting guidelines for the loan program and to ensure the associated risks are acceptable. After underwriting approval, the mortgage banker funds and closes the mortgage loan. Then the mortgage banker either sells/ships the mortgage loan to the investor or retains it in its own portfolio. In addition, the mortgage banker performs a quality control audit on a statistical sampling of the closed mortgage loans to detect fraud and to insure compliance with policies and procedures.

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Dr. Mark Levy, a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and ADA expert writes:

Assessing the Truth: How Forensic Psychiatrists and Psychologists Evaluate Litigants

Forensic psychiatrists and psychologists are mental health professional who have undergone addition training and have obtained advanced credentials in forensic psychiatry and psychology from their respective professional certifying boards. Their practice, like the practice of law, is divided into broad criminal and civil areas. In the criminal arena, forensic psychiatric and psychological experts are usually asked to opine about questions of capacity and sometimes, during sentencing, on mitigation. In the civil arena, forensic practice is more broad, covering, like your Bar Association does, many individual sections of legal practice, from probate to personal injury to family to employment law.

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1. Use a written agreement. If possible, specify a limit the expert cannot go over without your approval.

2. Expert fees will include travel time, travel expenses, and preparation.

3. Note that the expert’s fee for testimony may be higher than for reviewing a file and that the rate for appearing in court is usually per diem.

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A Kauai grand jury indicted retired auto dealer Jimmy Pflueger last week on seven counts of criminal manslaughter in connection with the 2006 Kaloko Dam collapse that killed seven people on Kauai’s North Shore. Pflueger is accused of altering an earthen dam that led to the breach on March 14, 2006, which sent floodwaters rushing down Wailapa Stream. The flood tore several homes off their foundations and washed away seven victims as they slept.

Lawyers said they have photos and witnesses to show Pflueger blocked a spillway for excess water even though he was warned not to. Pflueger testified he was aware that there was seepage through the Kaloko Dam and “that is a very major problem according to our experts,” said attorney Rick Fried. Earlier this year a dam expert said that the state should appoint an inspection team to evaluate dams so people living downstream know what the risks are.

For more, see BirminghamBusinessJournal.com.

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Allan Snyder, mold expert witness and principal of AFC Forensic Consulting, answers Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: What is Stachybotrys Chartarum?

A: Stachybotrys Chartarum (also known as Stachybotrys atra) is a type of mold that has been associated with adverse health effects in humans. Stachybotrys is a greenish-black mold that can grow on materials with a high cellulose content, such as drywall, ceiling tiles, and carpeting/padding that become chronically moist, or water-damaged, due to water leaks, or flooding.

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