Proving negligence in a personal injury case is challenging. Personal injury lawyers collect many different types of evidence to create stronger cases for clients. Police reports, medical records, and photographs are just a few examples of useful evidence.
Lawyers also rely on expert witnesses in personal injury cases. These expert witnesses can play an extremely important role when personal injury lawsuits go to trial.
What Are Expert Witnesses?
Expert witnesses are knowledgeable and experienced professionals in particular fields who lawyers call on to testify during legal proceedings. They help judges and juries understand complicated technical or scientific topics.
Many types of expert witnesses exist, including:
- Doctors and clinical researchers
- Forensic psychologists
- Forensic accountants
- Economics experts
- Accident reconstructionists
Personal injury lawyers can call on several of these types of expert witnesses during a single case. One might deliver medical testimony by explaining the outcome of a psychological evaluation, while another may offer vocational analysis or break down life care planning and its costs.
The Rule of Evidence provides specific guidelines on who can serve as expert witnesses during court cases. Courts can disqualify potential expert witnesses during pre-trial hearings if they don’t have knowledge and experience relevant to cases.
What Are the Responsibilities of Expert Witnesses?
When lawyers request their testimonies, expert witnesses in personal injury cases take on many responsibilities. They must come prepared to:
- Maintain impartiality: Expert witnesses are called by either plaintiffs or defendants in personal injury cases, but they don’t advocate for a side. Their role is simply to provide information that enables those involved in legal proceedings to better comprehend complex issues.
- Create informative reports: Expert witnesses may put together comprehensive reports showcasing their findings related to evidence in cases. These reports must also draw conclusions from evidence while remaining objective to keep their testimonies credible.
- Provide straightforward testimonies: When expert witnesses take the stand in personal injury cases, they must discuss the evidence related to cases and examine their findings in ways that are easy to understand. They must also face cross-examination and answer questions about their qualifications and conclusions.
Why Are Expert Witnesses Important to Personal Injury Cases?
For centuries, courts have allowed lawyers to call on expert witnesses during legal proceedings. Many consider them essential, especially when it comes to personal injury cases.
Expert witnesses in personal injury cases are important because they can:
- Explain the severity of injuries sustained during accidents and the short- and long-term impacts they may have on people.
- Establish clear connections between injuries that plaintiffs suffer and the actions of defendants.
- Quantify damages by examining medical expenses, lost wages, future earning capacity, and other factors.
Some lawyers might struggle to prove negligence in personal injury cases without expert witnesses. They may also have a difficult time convincing judges and juries to award their clients judgments that cover accident-related costs.
How Are Expert Witnesses for Personal Injury Cases Chosen?
We can’t overstate the importance of expert witnesses in personal injury cases. However, it’s just as important for personal injury lawyers to select the right expert witnesses.
If personal injury attorneys pick expert witnesses without the necessary credentials, they risk having courts disqualify their selections from legal proceedings. They also risk having expert witnesses deliver testimonies that don’t resonate with judges and judges and prove negligence on the part of defendants.
Personal injury lawyers will, therefore, go through meticulous and lengthy selection processes when handpicking expert witnesses, keeping the following factors in mind as they consider their options:
- The specific expertise that expert witnesses have and how it relates to personal injury cases
- The credentials of expert witnesses, such as educational degrees and professional certifications
- The communication styles of expert witnesses and their effectiveness in legal settings
- The ability of expert witnesses to remain impartial while presenting unbiased explanations
- The knowledge expert witnesses have on how different legal processes work
Many lawyers also like to call on expert witnesses who have served as such before in personal injury cases. Some will even check to see which expert witnesses were used during personal injury cases similar to the ones they’re handling to locate reliable options.
Contact Us To Speak With a Personal Injury Lawyer About Your Case
At Paynter Law, we assist our clients in selecting the right expert witnesses in personal injury cases. We also help them bolster personal injury cases in other ways when they trust us to provide legal representation. Call us at (919) 245-3116 to discuss your personal injury case with an experienced attorney.