Expert Witness Journal Issue 63 October 2025 - Flipbook - Page 58
The term involves the word ‘expert’ for a reason, they
should have expertise in their particular 昀椀eld and not
just be practicing in it, that shouldn’t qualify. There
is de昀椀nitely a positive correlation between who the
best experts are and their knowledge and expertise
within their particular 昀椀eld. Their CV, quali昀椀cations,
professional standing, reputation and experience
bears witness to their level of expertise.
appears that accreditation from a recognised body
is increasingly becoming a prerequiste of many
instructing litigants.
Understanding of the Literature
Although there are very few cases in which an expert
will physically end up in court, it is still paramount
that they have the ability to communicate and
present information well. A dentist may be correct in
their opinion but unless they can fully explain and
justify their opinion by reference to the relevant facts
and dental/medical literature, then their opinion
will be less convincing and thus will carry less weight.
Therefore the ability to explain the relevant anatomy
and physiology in layman’s terms to the court is
crucial.
An expert witness is called upon when the facts and
issues of the case cannot be easily identi昀椀ed and
requires the expertise of a specialist in a particular
area to explain and draw conclusions on the case. The
aim of an expert is to provide clarity and reasoned
judgement on the complex issues and facts within the
case.
Duties and Responsibilities
It’s a necessary trait that an expert has familiarity
and demonstrates a clear understanding of all
the procedural requirements for giving evidence
in a court of law. They must conform with the
requirements set out in Part 35 of the Civil Procedure
Rules.
Experts should always communicate in a nontechnical language that can be easily understood
by the judge and tribunal. This goes for the experts
report as well. A good expert report should always
be structured in a clear and concise manner, easily
understood by all, as well as citing all the relevant
facts, the investigation, the references, the analysis,
the reasoning and the conclusion.
An experts duty and responsibility is to the court only,
it is their duty to help the court on matters within
their expertise. Experts must remain impartial to the
case as their goal is to present an independent view
that is objective of the case in question. The eventual
outcome of the case should have no bearing on the
experts decision making. As their primary duty is
to the court, they must present an honest, impartial
and rational opinion based on the relevant case facts,
even if that means acting against the best wishes of
the party by whom they have been instructed.
The 昀椀nal key quality a good expert presents
is decisiveness. The expert must draw on their
knowledge to form a decisive opinion based on the
relevant facts presented in the case. When factbased opinions aren’t possible, an expert needs to be
decisive and provide, to the best of their ability, an
objective and accurate opinion based on the balance
of probability. It is imperative the expert is able to
understand the di昀昀erence between what a dentist
might to and what a dentist ought to do in any given
situation.
Impartiality starts before instruction. Before
accepting any instruction, the expert must ensure
that there will be no con昀氀ict of interest in the case in
question, i.e. that the eventual opinion formed by the
expert will be free from emotional attachment, bias
and prejudice. This will obviously not occur should
the expert have a prior relationship, on any level,
with the defendant in question for instance.
Selecting the Right Expert
Thorough attention is required when reviewing a
case. An expert must give careful attention to his
or her instructions, ensuring that they scrutinize
all relevant medical and dental records and witness
statements from which to draw their conclusions.
Paying attention to detail helps to present a balanced
but clear view of the case at hand, particularly the
standards and accepted body of opinion that was
used at the time the supposed negligence occurred.
A good expert must always pay attention to the
accepted body of opinion at the time of the event
to adjudicate whether negligence has occurred by
comparing the treatment facts with the then accepted
treatment guidelines. In these time-lapse instances, it
can be very important to choose an expert who was
in practice during a similar timeframe. Likewise it is
key that when selecting an expert witness for cases of
the not too distant past, the expert in question must
still be practicing and be up to speed with the now
accepted body of opinion.
Emotion can manifest itself not just as a result of a
prior relationship, but also due to ones own past
experiences. Previous experiences may result in a
positive/negative relationship with one viewpoint
and for example, perhaps a feeling of sympathy
towards the defendant. Bias has thus been created
and neutrality towards the case lost.
Expert Witness Training
It is also important to have continuity when choosing
an expert and knowing that they have been through
adequate training in the expert witness 昀椀eld and have
enough experience in that 昀椀eld to write reports which
are legible, easy to read and precise. It is essential to
understand a basic knowledge of the legal system so
as to help the court reach its opinion if required. It
EXPERT WITNESS JOURNAL
56
OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2025
