The judge found that it was without justification and entirely unecessary for an expert to question the opposing expert's professionalism and motives in selecting evidence, noting that this approach was unhelpful for the tribunal. 

One of the key roles of the Expert Witness Institute is to ensure that policy, rule and regulatory changes are informed by the experience of our members and the needs of the expert witness community and the wider justice system. In this update, we discuss our work in this area over the last 3 months.   

On 1 October 2024, the latest amendments to the Civil Procedure Rules will come into force.

The Family Procedure Rule Committee is consulting on a new draft Practice Direction 27A on court bundles.

Earlier this year, we asked our members about the single biggest change they’ve seen since they started practicing as an Expert Witness. With members from numerous disciplines who’ve been practicing from 40 years to 4 months, we expected a wide variety of insights, and we weren’t disappointed.

Simon and Sean discuss expert fees and catch up with Dominic Woodhouse from Partners in Costs to talk about cost management and budgeting in civil proceedings. 

The Forensic Science Regulator has updated its Guidance on Declarations of Compliance and Non-Compliance with the Forensic Science Regulator: Code of Practice. 

The judge noted that that the manner in which two Expert Witnesses in Chartered Surveying gave their evidence was more advocacy than opinion, with one expert’s report reading more like a skeleton argument.

This case concerns three important issues in personal injury litigation in Northern Ireland: the extent of the plaintiff’s medical records to which an expert can have access; what the expert can ask about how the injury was sustained; and whether a plaintiff can refuse to be assessed by a particular expert.   

In the circumstances of the case, including the absence of a timely challenge to lack of form, the judge gave due weight to an expert report and the answers to questions without subtraction for lack of compliance with CPR 35 and rule 3 of the Practice Directions.