Right to fair trial required that accused be entitled to challenge expert witness and adduce own expert evidence
The European Court of Human Rights has recently addressed the issue of expert evidence in the case of Yevstratyev v. Russia – 11620/17 (Judgment : Right to a fair trial : Third Section Committee) [2020] ECHR 906 (15 December 2020). The applicant had been charged with murder and robbery. On a re-trial, forensic evidence was […]
Expert evidence was admissible from a party to an insolvency action
In a New South Wales corporate insolvency action, an expert report by a consultant of one of the plaintiff firms was admitted into evidence by the court. The report was by Martin Madden, a senior consultant in KordaMentha, one of the plaintiff firms in the insolvency of the steelmaker Arrium Ltd. Arrium’s counsel argued that […]
Can a court reject an uncontroverted expert report?
The High Court of England and Wales has considered the question of whether a trial court is entitled to reject a plaintiff’s expert evidence, where no expert evidence has been preferred by the defendant. The claimant had suffered food poisoning while visiting Turkey, and brought an action against the travel company. He relied on the […]
Questions for expert witnesses should be confined to live issues
In this Hong Kong decision from 2017, the liquidator in winding up proceedings was given leave to seek expert determination. A list of questions provided was deemed too vague, and the court suggested that the liquidator was using the exercise as an attempt to fish for evidence. “The Court considered the proposed list of expert […]
Referring an injured party directly to a medical specialist
In the December 2019 issue of the Bar Review, Orla Kelly of Cantillons Solicitors questions two recent dicta of the Irish High Court, in an article entitled ‘To refer or not to refer: Are solicitor referrals to a medical consultant a step too far for prudent practice?’. In Flannery v. HSE [2018] IEHC 127 and […]
Evidence of maritime expert excluded for lack of CV and failure to engage with primary facts
“The court agreed with the defendant’s argument to exclude the expert’s testimony on the breach of the standard of care because these were legal conclusions. The court further noted that the expert was not qualified to testify because there was no evidence of his employers, length of marine industry employment, level of education and training, or […]
The ‘gatekeeper’ role of the courts in admitting expert testimony
This article highlights the difficulties involved where one party seeks to exclude expert evidence. The suggestion is that, where a judge acts as ‘gatekeeper’, there may be an imbalance arising from the judge’s lack of technical understanding. In Nova Scotia (Community Services) v J.M, 2018 NSCA 71 (CanLII), the trial judge ruled evidence from a […]
Insufficient evidence of expert’s qualifications
In a recent decision of the High Court of Ireland, the court refused to admit a report by a purported expert, where there was insufficient evidence of his qualifications. “In that report, there is no indication whatsoever that Mr.Fitzpatrick holds any qualification at all in relation to banking or financial matters. Nor isthere any statement […]
Use of slides by expert witnesses in jury trials
The courts of Ontario have given guidance to expert witnesses who wish to use PowerPoint-type slides in their presentations in jury trials. The key points are as follows: “As a result of the foregoing I gave parties the following guidelines for use of PowerPoint slides at trial: (a) The PowerPoints must be […]
Limit on expert witnesses declared unconstitutional by Canadian court
In 2019, the courts of British Columbia introduced an amendment to their rules, which provided that parties in road traffic cases were limited to three expert reports on the issue of damages. In the case of Crowder v. British Columbia (Attorney General), 2019 BCSC 1824, this rule was declared unconstitutional. For more information, see: https://www.cwilson.com/case-study-gregory-crowder-and-trial-lawyers-association-of-british-columbia-v-attorney-general-of-british-columbia-2019-bcsc-1824/?utm_source=Mondaq&utm_medium=syndication&utm_campaign=View-Original