Getting the best from your expert

During my research for The Effective and Efficient Clinical Negligence Expert Witness, I came across an article in the Expert Witness Institute’s newsletter from June 2014, in which Amanda Stevens shared her thoughts about how the expert witness is likely to fare post-Jackson.

Much of what she says applies equally to experts and to solicitors. The question is, how do you get the best ‘value’ from an expert and minimise the risk of them costing you money?

Work together

Under the Jackson reforms, the role of the expert has not changed, but there is now a greater need for solicitors to manage time and money on a case-by-case basis. Experts must therefore be made aware of the available budget up front, and be prepared to give estimates of their total fees. The expert must know how to accurately price their work.

Teamwork always saves time and energy. If the expert won’t work with you then reconsider whether to continue using them. The flipside is that you must also work with them, helping to iron out any problems and, in doing so, prevent possible delays.

You must let the expert have the court timetable for each case as soon as you receive it, accompanied by the message that neither the court nor you will accept any delay. Sharing all relevant information with your expert helps build trust and rapport.

Excellent communication also lies at the heart of the solicitor-expert relationship. Make yourself available if the expert wants to talk to you, and respond to their emails (if you use emails, and only if they are secure) and letters promptly. Frustration on the part of the expert can potentially damage their relationship with you.

Sticking to the Civil Procedure Rules, timetables, and budgets is all part and parcel of the expert’s role. However, significant problems can arise when it comes to reading their reports: whether it is a lack of clarity or logic, or a complete misunderstanding of what they have been asked to do, it all adds up to extra, unnecessary time and cost (loss of earnings) on your part.

If you don’t do this already, think about drawing up guidance notes and advice about the structure and content of the reports you’d like to receive. If, however, despite a little bit of help, or even coaching, from you, the expert repeatedly delivers substandard reports, again consider not using them again.

Understand their profession

While some solicitors go out of their way to try to understand the expert’s profession, some don’t. Lawyers expect the expert to understand the law, but why not ask the expert to enlighten you about whatever work they do? I used to give talks to groups of solicitors about my profession and what my job entailed. I found that once I’d ‘trained’ the solicitors, and given them a better understanding of my clinical work, they stopped asking me questions that really didn’t need to be asked, let alone answered. All of this saved us both time and money in the longer term.

Some experts rather innocently and foolishly approach their work as if it were a hobby – something to do in the evenings or at weekends, perhaps. Oblivious to the serious nature of the role, they drift along, taking their time, expecting to be paid twice if, for example, they have to rewrite a report because the first one didn’t answer any of the questions put to them.

This might have once been the world of the expert witness, but in this post-Jackson era, experts must now work effectively (doing the right things) and efficiently (doing things right). If your expert continuously fails to deliver on time it is probably time to look elsewhere.

There can be little doubt that the Jackson reforms are going to have an effect on both solicitors and experts. Learning how to effectively and efficiently manage your experts is going to help you minimise the negative impact this could have on your time and on your earnings. When you find a great expert, nurture them and generally treasure them. They could save you lots of money. SJ

Michael Young is a former dental expert witness and the author of The Effective and Efficient Clinical Negligence Expert Witness