Expert Witness Blog

In Personal Emergency Preparedness: How Prepared Are You? banking expert witness Catherine Ghiglieri writes that since 9/11 the banking industry has focused on emergency preparedness in dealing with potential terrorist threats or natural disasters. Very few have stopped to consider their personal emergency preparedness. Ghiglieri suggests putting:

All important documents or copies of them, in a binder that can be easily taken out of the home in case of a quick evacuation. Our binders are bright red, clearly marked with “Emergency Binder,” and are placed in an easily accessible location, such as a bookcase or closet near the door. In the event of an impending hurricane, these binders can easily be placed in a large zip-lock bag to assure water-tightness if an evacuation is mandated or the roof leaks. A selection of baby and marriage pictures or anything else that is precious should also be assembled and located with the emergency binders.

More to come from Catherine Ghiglieri, former Texas Banking Commissioner and President of Ghiglieri & Company, a bank consulting firm www.ghiglieri.com.

Appraiser Vickie Adams tells us when a gems & jewelry expert witness is needed and describes the process:

Marriage or business dissolution looks to an appraisal for equitable division.

Civil and criminal litigation requires an independent appraisal to report the dollar value of damage.

Antiques, art, & collectibles appraisal expert witnesses are knowledgeable regarding property types and their relevant markets. These expert witnesses have prepared themselves to identify and value personal property. When hiring such an expert, look for one with the special knowledge, skill, experience, training, and education in valuation. They will be able to provide reports and expert testimony on art valuation, antique furniture, coins, metalware, sports collectibles and more.

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Business valuation expert witness Dr. Kamin bases his philosophy on the teaching of Professor Merton Miller of the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, 1990 Nobel Prize in economics for his pioneering work in the economic theory of valuation and corporate finance. Dr. Kamin writes:

Professor Miller’s teaching has imbued the entire field of business valuation for both public and private companies. His teaching led to the phrase “free cash flow” to describe the source of the economic benefit to shareholders that is the basis for attribution of value to share ownership. Free cash flow is the cash withdrawable from a business after allowing for capital needed for reinvestment to support the firm’s growth opportunities.

Professor Miller’s premise is that the only economically rational basis for valuing a business enterprise is the aggregate current value of all future free cash flows distributable by the firm. Each future year’s cash flow has a present price per dollar that reflects the time-value of money and the compensation for risk bearing to the future date. The economically rational value of the business firm is then the price per dollar of each year’s future free cash flow multiplied by the number of dollars of future free cash flow summed up over all the future years in which free cash flow is expected to be generated.

Human factors, a specialty of psychology and industrial engineering, focuses on the efficiency, safety, and comfort of things that people interact with at work or leisure. Human factors expert witness Dr. Robert C. Sugarman writes:

Typical forensic applications of human factors expertise are answering questions about human abilities and limitations for attention, memory, motivation, perception, movement, and strength. These questions often come up in the context of auto accidents, slip and fall, warnings and labels inadequacy, and industrial accidents. An area that is rapidly gaining attention is medical accidents, especially caused by device design errors.

A question posed to me during an industrial accident trial early in my career made me think about what we can know about another person. I was asked, “Don’t people have an obligation to protect themselves from danger?” I answered that the question is more a matter of philosophy and not within the domain of human factors. If people always protected themselves as a matter of obligation, no one would take on a job that was not inherently safe. That would include almost every occupation we depend on for our well being.

Expert witness R. Craig Jerner describes metallurgical failure analysis in automobile accidents. “When an automobile accident happens, the question frequently arises did the wheel, axle, steering, spring, bolts, frames, brackets, or screws fail causing the accident, or did the impact forces of the accident cause the failed/broken component to break. Metallurgical failure analysis and/or root cause analysis is often required to provide the answer.”

Jerner describes a pickup rollover accident and his failure analysis expert witness findings:

The right rear wheel of a pickup was found nearby the vehicle after a rollover accident. The “mag wheel” failed in the spokes and welded spoke attachment feet. Two other “mag” wheels on the subject pickup were also observed to be fractured. Did the wheel loss cause the rollover or was the wheel loss a result of the rollover?