Litigation Support

Publicity, Practice Management, and More

Posted on November 06, 2009
I'm finally catching up on my reading and found some gems:Being mentioned or quoted by the media can be a very effective (and inexpensiv) marketing tool and who wouldn't want to be mentioned in the New York Times? See some original tips to accomplish that in this post at Nolo's Legal Marketing Blawg...

Expert Witness Retainers

Posted on October 23, 2009
An expert emailed me a question about requiring fees up-front, scheduling and travel. I thought you might find our exchange interesting.Expert's Question:I charge a non-refundable deposit when an attorney gives me a trial date and asks me to commit to this...

What You Say and Do Will....

Posted on September 16, 2009
.... come back to haunt you. Attorney Robert Ambrogi has a great article "When What Happens Online Ends Up In Court" about ten cases in which various players in the courtroom - judges, lawyers, witnesses - found themselves in trouble due to their online activity...

This Takes the Cake!

Posted on September 16, 2009
I've mentioned before about having contact information on promotional materials and easy to find on your websites. But now I must add -- include contact information in your directory listings and advertising! In glancing through a print directory of expert witnesses I came across a full page listing with lots of impressive information and NO contact information...

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Questions about Expert Witness Income

Posted on September 09, 2009
Have you ever been questioned by an attorney about your income as an expert witness? We recently emailed our newsletter subscribers an article about this. It struck a nerve and I have compiled the responses, which you can read here.The most common advice seems to be to answer in percentages...

Be Careful with Your Expert Witness Website

Posted on August 21, 2009
This is a caution about building and maintaining your expert witness website. As you know, everything you do, say, and write can and will be cussed and discussed and used against you. The added danger of the Internet as opposed to other venues is that once it's there, it's always there and it doesn't matter if you change it the very next day...

Expert Witness Deposition Video

Posted on August 01, 2009
Being from Texas, we are familiar with Frontier Justice. We just don't often expect to see it in current times, much less in an expert witness deposition.Check out this excerpt of a deposition of an expert witness by the famous (infamous?) Houston attorney, Joe Jamail.

Mid-Year Review for Expert Witnesses

Posted on July 24, 2009
This is two-pronged post. First, a gentle reminder about staying on top of your marketing. Now is a good time to check your directory listings and advertising to make sure a) all your contact information is still current and listed correctly and b) that your description/key words accurately describe your practice...

Expert Witnesses and Retirement

Posted on July 06, 2009
Have you planned for retirement? Will you simply close up shop and end your practice? Are you considering selling your expert witness practice? Many experts have contemplated this issue. And it matters, even it seems years away, because your end goals could affect the practice management and marketing decisions you make today and in the years to come...

Help This Expert: Working with a Disability

Posted on June 29, 2009
I recently received a question from an expert about how to continue an expert witness practice when the expert has a disabling health condition. Here's the email I received:"A colleague of mine is a self-employed expert witness. He works out of a home office in a fairly rural town, and is occasionally called upon to travel to a client's offices or meet with attorneys...

Sotomayor and Expert Witnesses

Posted on June 10, 2009
As one who majored in Government and Politics, I follow the Supreme Court rather closely. The change in make-up I see coming in the next four, eight, twelve years, starting with Sotomayor, fascinates me. Attorney Roger Ambrogi's article on Sonia Sotomayor's Top 5 Rulings on Experts provides a look into how her trial court experience affected her appellate opinions and maybe what we can expect if she is confirmed to the Supreme Court.

Going On Vacation?

Posted on May 30, 2009
Vacation season is here. Many of you will be notify callers of your absence through your voice mail message. Jim Calloway's recent post about the message you compose offers sound advice that applies to your "out-of-office" automatic email response as well...

Tracking (and Billing) Time

Posted on May 14, 2009
I've been reading numerous articles and posts lately about how much billable time is not billed. Expert consultants that bill by the hour (which should be most, since billing based on outcome is unethical!) are definitely at risk. In our fast-paced world of constant email, phone calls and other interruptions, it is easy to neglect writing down that fifteen minutes working on X before the next interruption...

Recommending Other Expert Witnesses

Posted on April 22, 2009
We've had an on-going discussion with our newsletter readers about getting payment from insurance companies. Within that discussion, I received the following email with an interesting story pertinent to marketing an expert witness practice:I provide expert witness services in the insurance and reinsurance industries both in court and in arbitrations...

Keep Your Practice Busy

Posted on March 26, 2009
If your expert witness practice is suffering in this economy, asking yourself a few questions might spark some new ideas to get more business:Is there an industry going through a lot of litigation right now that you could target?Is there an additional service you could provide, such as helping attorneys when conducting depositions of other experts (what questions to ask, etc...

Thoughtleading for Expert Witnesses

Posted on January 31, 2009
"Become the Go-To Authority" caught my eye, so I placed the book on my Amazon list and finally got around to reading it a few months later. Ken Lizotte's book, The Expert's Edge, is about how to become a "thoughtleader" and authority in your field. Although not all of it is applicable to expert witnesses because of the unique nature of the legal field (not being an advocate, possible contradictions in opinions, etc...

Your Expert Witness Practice & The Unexpected

Posted on January 27, 2009
What happens after the unexpected? I know I harp on preparing for disaster, the future, and the unexpected, but I was recently reminded of another factor in the equation.The wife of an expert witness who died unexpectedly contacted me last week. She was trying to close his practice in the most responsible way possible - contacting clients, trying to refer them to other experts, returning files to attorneys, etc...

Expert Witness Practice a Little Quiet?

Posted on January 21, 2009
If your practice is less busy than you would like right now, make use of the extra time by spiffing up your database of contacts. Enter those business cards you collected at your last association meeting. Scroll through and see if a referral source deserves a thank you...

Marketing Resolutions

Posted on January 06, 2009
Have you made any marketing resolutions for the New Year? This post from Lyne Noella might spark some ideas for your own practice. She listed her Top 5 New Year's Resolutions, all applicable to expert witness/professional services marketing.(Hat tip to Michelle Golden for the heads ups on this post)

Expert Witness Resource Round-Up

Posted on December 03, 2008
A few resources to investigate and read while waiting in the airport or escaping from the in-laws over the holidays:br /br /One of our newsletter readers alerted me to a document from the Federal Judicial Center, "a href="http://www.fjc.gov/public/pdf...

Are You Visible On the Internet?

Posted on November 28, 2008
One of the services we provide our expert witness clients is search engine optimization. But if you are working on your website yourself and want some pointers, Google just released its SEO Starters Guide with some surprisingly good explanations about how Google ranks websites and steps you can do to improve your website's visibility.

Lawyer Involvement in Your Expert Report

Posted on November 03, 2008
How much input should your attorney-client have in crafting your expert report? Where is the boundary? Attorney Robert Ambrogi addresses this in a recent newsletter published by IMS Expert Services, "Expert Reports: Should Lawyers Keep Hands Off?" Be sure and read the comments section as well...

Perils of the Internet for Expert Witnesses

Posted on October 08, 2008
In the October issue of Florida Trend, the business magazine for our fair state, I read a comment from consultant Amy Singer regarding online research about jurors. Singer states, "We ask them ...whether they have a website....a blog...a MySpace page...

Expert Witness Websites - Contact Info?

Posted on September 29, 2008
I hate to bring this up again, but --- please include contact information on your website! I had a friend contact me recently for help in finding an expert witness in a particular area of expertise. I found four and went to their websites. Two (TWO of the four!) had NO contact information whatsoever...

Expert Witness Expenses

Posted on July 10, 2008
If you frequently travel by car for business purposes, you may want to note that on July 1, 2008 the IRS raised the standard mileage rate used to calculate the deductible costs of driving a vehicle from 50.5 cents to 58.5 cents. They normally only adjust the rate once, at the beginning of the year, but the rising cost of gas made a sixth month change seem more reasonable and fair...

Contracts, Retainers - Getting Paid by Attorneys

Posted on June 05, 2008
We have had many discussions with our newsletter readers about 'getting paid' by their attorney clients. Rosalie addressed this most recently in "Expert Question on Being Retained". One issue she addresses is the signatures on the expert's engagement agreement...

What Would You Ask an Attorney?

Posted on June 05, 2008
If you could speak frankly with your attorney clients or prospects, what would you ask them? In the next few weeks I will be interviewing several attorneys about their thoughts, experiences, advice, etc., regarding expert witnesses and consultants. What would you ask? Please leave me your suggestions in the comments (you can post anonymously).

U.S. Court System Not So Bad

Posted on May 27, 2008
The United States legal system has its flaws, but compared to alternatives, we are doing pretty good. You, as expert witnesses, take your share of criticism - being accused of being hired guns, having your credentials and motives questioned, being lumped in with the few bad apples out there, etc...

It's Not Too Late...

Posted on May 23, 2008
The 17th Annual National Expert Witness Conference is coming up - June 19-20 in Hyannis, Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Presenters include judges, attorneys and experts. Here's one expert's feedback from last year's event: "I went last year and it was great...

Marketing Professional Services Can Be Risky

Posted on May 23, 2008
Marketing an expert witness practice carries its own unique risks, but marketing any professional service takes some courage. How do you know it will work? What if it not only fails, but alienates potential clients? Not to mention that you've probably put a hefty chunk of change into the effort...

Expert Witness Resource Round-Up

Posted on May 15, 2008
A brief selection of recent articles and resources:Should experts collaborate or compete? This is the question addressed by attorney Robert Ambrogi in "Expert Secrecy: An Ethics Dilemna?" This article has generated several comments from readers.The second part of Allan Griff's article "Why Do They Call Us Witnesses" (I mentioned the first part in an earlier post) has been published at the IMS website...

Designation With/Without Permission

Posted on May 05, 2008
In light of our recent discussion on being designated as an expert without being contacted/retained by counsel, this decision by state Superior Court Judge Raymond Batten is quite interesting. He was asked to disqualify an expert witness for the prosecution because the defense team had contacted him first...

Perfect Time for a "Howdy" Card

Posted on May 05, 2008
With the U.S. Postal rates set to increase again on May 12th, now is the perfect time to send a "howdy card" to your contact list and save some money in the process. (You might also stock up on "Forever" stamps, which are good for first-class mail forever, no matter what rate increases occur in the future...

Different Fees for Different Clients?

Posted on April 28, 2008
An expert witness recently emailed me this question: "Does it affect an expert's credibility to use different fee schedules with different clients?"My immediate response was that all information is discoverable these days - anything you make public on the Internet, print and mail out (even to individuals), say, do, etc...

This N That

Posted on April 18, 2008
Here's a collection of some articles and resources I think you might find helpful:"There is both an art and science to writing an expert report..." In the Fall 2007 issue of The Legal Write, Micheal J. Molder, JD, CPA, CFE and David H. Glusman, CPA, DABFA, CFS, Cr...

Directory Listing Tip for Expert Witnesses

Posted on April 15, 2008
Rosalie offers this tip to experts about advertising or listing in directories:In most directories, both print and Internet, you have a limited number of indexes to select. One of the services we perform for our consulting clients is to edit and rewrite if necessary their directory listings, check their index selections for greatest effectiveness, and expand their keyword list when that feature is available...

Dealing With the Opposing Expert Witness

Posted on April 03, 2008
We recently received an email from a reader of our newsletter, Expert News, about a problem the expert experienced with an opposing expert. With permission, I am reprinting it below and hope that you may have some advice for this expert witness.There may be nothing one can do when an opposing expert egregiously inflates or fabricates their credentials and one's own client attorney fails to use evidence to prove it, but what about when that expert also tells lies about you? I've had this experience in two recent cases, where the other expert stated on the record to both juries that I have a vendetta against her and that I had contacted "literally hundreds of people" and "fabricated stories about her," neither of which is true...

Are You Really an "Expert Witness"?

Posted on April 01, 2008
Allan Griff wrote an article for the BullsEye Newsletter at IMS Expert Services called "Why Do They Call Us Witnesses?" The opening sentence explains - "The words expert and witness are often joined together, as if the purpose of the expert is to be a witness at a trial...

Charging for Your Time

Posted on March 22, 2008
Do you charge for every minute you spend working on a particular project or case? What about when a past client calls and asks you to look up a detail in an old file? It may take you fifteen or twenty minutes to find that file and then another ten to email or call the client back...

Meet the Expert on Expert Witness Marketing

Posted on March 22, 2008
My mother Rosalie, the Expert on Expert Witness Marketing, will be speaking at the NADE Conference on April 23 in Austin, Texas and at the FEWA Workshop in Dallas, Texas on December 5.If you will be attending either of these events, be sure to say hello! I'll let you know about her other speaking engagements as they come up - Rosalie really enjoys meeting readers of our newsletter and blog and putting a face to a name.

Experts and Social Networking

Posted on March 17, 2008
Clark Johnson at Round Table Group is working to educate expert witnesses on how to use the internet and social networking platforms to communicate with each other.I realize that for many professional service providers, this is the latest and greatest in marketing and getting known...

Misstatements by Expert Witnesses in Deposition

Posted on March 07, 2008
Yesterday, while researching the answer to a client's question about depositions, I came across the following from Depositions: The Comprehensive Guide for Expert Witnesses. Correct Misstatements as Soon as Possible: Expert witnesses are not expected to be perfect...

Can Your Expert Practice Survive the Unexpected?

Posted on March 03, 2008
Are you prepared for the unexpected? Could your practice survive your absence for an extended amount of time? After a recent extended illness, I am giving a lot of thought to these questions and more, and urge you to do so as well. What will happen to your practice if you unexpectedly take ill or suffer an accident or natural disaster? Do you have disability insurance? Do you know a trusted colleague you could pass your active cases to? What about your employees - do you have a plan to pay them if no new business comes in the door for awhile? Do you have a minimum of three months reserve built up for your own living expenses? Who would notify your clients and put your plans into action if you were unable to do so? Do they know what you would want done? I certainly hope that none of these situations occur and any plans you make regarding them never have to be enacted but, as my mother says, the best way to prevent disaster is to plan for it.

More Expert Witness Resources & News

Posted on January 29, 2008
Thank you to everyone for sending me the latest on happenings and resources for expert witnesses. Here's a summary of the latest:The Round Table Group has introduced their blog for expert witnesses with a focus on web strategies to help experts and lawyers communicate...

Podcast from the Entrepreneurial MD

Posted on January 24, 2008
Philippa Kennealy, the Entrepreneurial MD, recently interviewed Rosalie Hamilton, the Expert Witness Marketing Consultant about helping professionals develop expert witness practices. Philippa links to the free podcast of the interview in this blog post...

Engagement Agreements Between Experts & Attorneys

Posted on January 21, 2008
We frequently receive questions about retainers, contracts, billing, collections, etc., from experts. Some experts are hesitant to require an engagement agreement from their attorney-clients for fear of driving them away or appearing too demanding or some such idea...

Marketing Lessons from Obama and Huckabee

Posted on January 16, 2008
I follow the major political races pretty closely (my major at University was politics and government). Regardless of your ideology, there are marketing lessons we can take from the current campaigns for president.One reason the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary are so key is the simple fact that it's not possible for the candidates to speak one-on-one to every voter in the country...

Tech Rant

Posted on January 02, 2008
I try not to get too personal in my blog posts, but I am frustrated. In preparing for the start of the new year, I have been evaluating our technology and anticipated needs, costs, etc. I am highly annoyed at the need to "update" everything, even when it has been meeting our needs perfectly well since the last update...

Expert Practice Management

Posted on January 01, 2008
One reader of our newsletter for experts recently shared with me these business model suggestions he uses in managing his own expert witness and consulting practice:"These are basic operating rules that, in my opinion, if broken will cause problems:1...

My Wishes for You in 2008

Posted on January 01, 2008
I don't know if it ever occurred to him that everything he said might someday be quoted but Benjamin Franklin had a knack for saying the right words for every occasion, so I will borrow his words in sending you my wishes for this new year: "Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each year find you a better man...

Spend Your Profits on Yourself

Posted on December 29, 2007
End of the Year Tip:If all went as planned, you've had a profitable year. But that has its own little downside - now you have to pay taxes on the profit. The upside is - you have two more days to invest some of that profit in your business. See if you can advance register for continuing education classes in your field; pre-pay for business development or marketing services; or purchase books, software, or other products that will benefit your practice...

Website Question Made Our Day

Posted on December 19, 2007
In a recent email to our newsletter subscribers, Rosalie gave her views about the current economy and the subsequent need for professional service providers to spark up their businesses. The very first email received in response was from a long-term client asking whether his website that we had created several years ago needed to be updated...

Marketing Your Professional Services Is Not Optional

Posted on November 18, 2007
Happy Thanksgiving! In appreciation of all our experts I would like to share one of Rosalie's best essays about expert witness marketing. If you are one of the many who, like my mother Rosalie, will be traveling this week (she's headed to her hometown, Wichita Falls, TX), print this out and you'll have something to read while waiting at the airport!Marketing Your Professional Services Is Not Optional --by Rosalie HamiltonSometimes professionals say, ?I don?t market my services; I rely on word-of-mouth to get business...

Expert Witness Groups and Events

Posted on November 14, 2007
Expert witness Dr. Gerry Goldhaber emailed me this week about an upcoming event for expert witnesses. He would like to invite expert readers in the NYC area to attend the Gotham Networking Group's first meeting of expert witnesses on November 26 at 12:30 p...

Expert Witness Questions Holiday Cards

Posted on November 10, 2007
Like it or not, the holiday season is upon us. What business development activities do you use during this season? Do you send cards or gifts to your clients (past and present), referral sources, and prospects? Do you sign each card personally?One expert has some questions about this and sent me the following email this past week:It is coming up on the holiday season and in past years the firm I worked for mailed a card to clients, past and present...

Attorneys Getting the Most Out of Their Experts

Posted on October 31, 2007
The Expert Witness Committee of the ABA's Litigation Section publishes a quarterly "Expert Alert" for attorneys about working with expert witnesses. The latest issue (Fall 2007) features the article "Tips From the Experts: Getting the Most Out of Your Experts...

Growing Your Expert Practice

Posted on October 24, 2007
Some time ago we did a random survey of our newsletter readers about the issues they face in building and expanding their expert practices. Experts mentioned five concerns/challenges above all the rest:1. Identifying and locating the specific attorneys who handle issues issues involving their expertise, reaching them at the right time, and targeting the decision maker...

Expert Witness Deposition on YouTube

Posted on October 24, 2007
Expert witness video has made it to YouTube. Check out this video clip from the deposition of an accident reconstruction often retained by insurance companies. Search a little through the videos - there is a surprising amount of expert witness related material.

Practice Management Tips

Posted on October 08, 2007
Although written for lawyers, I found many realistic tips applicable to any professional service providers - in a solo practice or firm. Written by Jason Krause for the ABA Law Journal, the article is titled "Law Hacks - 101 tips, tricks and tools to make you a more productive, less stressed-out lawyer...

Too Much Litigation Experience?

Posted on October 08, 2007
In a blog post at Science Evidence, attorney Cliff Hutchinson comments on a Georgia trial court's standards and decisions regarding expert testimony in the case Bowers v. Norfolk Southern Corp.Does the number of cases an expert has been retained on determine his classification as a "hired gun"? If so, does this warrant a stricter application of Daubert to the admissibility of that expert's opinion? Can wishy-washy terminology be cause for exclusion of an expert's testimony? (Take note of the italicized terms in his post).

Computer Maintenance as Marketing Tool

Posted on September 12, 2007
One of the very best techniques for generating more business for your expert practice is the quality of your work. Especially in the deadline/calendar-dominated legal world, your responsiveness, promptness and dedication to meeting agreed-upon dates of completion can mean the difference in creating a source of referrals or ruining your reputation...

Top Ten Credibility Killers

Posted on August 26, 2007
As an expert witness, the most effective marketing technique in your arsenal is the quality of your work. In addition to the strategies you can use to improve your consulting, reports, testimony, etc., you would be wise to also steer clear of the following damaging mistakes:1...

It Doesn't Have to Be Complicated

Posted on August 13, 2007
When looking at growing your expert practice, have you ever thought -"I just don't know where to start. I could list in directories, but - which ones? And what do I list under? Should I do something to my website? What should I add, take away, or change? Should I try publishing articles or speaking at conferences? What about trade shows? Does direct mail still work? How about an email newsletter? Would press releases and media exposure help my expert practice? Do cold calls have any value?"When looking at the various marketing options out there, I hear from many of you that the choices are just too overwhelming...

Marketing Doesn't Have to Hurt

Posted on August 01, 2007
I frequently talk to experts who initially believe that experts shouldn't market. But as our conversation continues, it becomes clear that the foundation of that belief is a misunderstanding of what "marketing" is for professional service providers.Marketing your expert services does not mean following some rigid set of defined steps and cookie-cutter actions...

Expert to Expert Advice Request

Posted on July 26, 2007
As I have said before, so many experts express frustration about encountering situations in the legal industry that they have no experience with in their own field and thus no guidelines. You, our readers, have been very generous in sharing your experiences and best practices with other experts, so on behalf of an expert who contacted me last week, I ask for your assistance...

Getting Paid for Your Work - Know the Local Statutes

Posted on July 24, 2007
As you may know, we have had an ongoing discussion about experts getting paid. How do you make sure you are paid? Should you require a retainer? If you aren't paid, should you sue the attorney? Can you refuse to hand over your expert report unless you are paid? Can you/should you require payment for services rendered prior to participating in a deposition or testifying in court?In a recent email on this subject, an expert in California wrote, ?I found out a few years ago that here in California, the attorney requesting the deposition is not required to pay the expert a week before or even an hour before!? This was new to me, so I checked with Jim Robinson, an attorney in California and president of JurisPro Expert Witness Directory...

Expert Witness Directory Time

Posted on July 19, 2007
July is the month when several expert witness print directories are published. My sister-in-law, Lisa, frequently checks our clients' listings and ads in both online and print directories and publications, and sent me some thoughts about the errors and omissions she frequently finds...

How Attorneys Vet Experts and Other Info

Posted on July 09, 2007
In their June newsletter, IMS Expert Services published an article by attorney Robert Ambrogi on How to Vet an Expert. He lists some valuable resources that you can use to check out the opposing expert or, even better, investigate yourself using the links he provides and see what information attorneys are reading about you...

Is Anybody Out There?

Posted on July 02, 2007
Am I the only one working? I've gotten more "Out of Office" automatic email responses and voice mail answers today than I've ever had. Heck, even the spammers seem to be on vacation.If you are working (or pretending to) and experiencing the same thing, this might be an ideal time to evaluate your business development efforts...

Experts Can Sue and Be Sued

Posted on June 29, 2007
Jim Robinson's post on the Expert Witness Blog today is a must read. In Expert Witnesses Can Both Sue and Be Sued, Jim discusses issues from a key California case that probably are not known by most experts.

Expert Witness Key to $2M Verdict

Posted on June 27, 2007
Expert Witness Key to $2M Verdict (Massachusetts Lawyer Weekly)- After a certain number of cases, it is easy to forget the importance of what you say and do in your work as an expert and the possible consequences. You've heard the saying that many cases these days are settled or decided based on each side's experts; this is a prime example...

Experts - Critique Your Communication Skills

Posted on June 08, 2007
With demonstrative evidence key to most litigation, you must remember not to let the visual aspects distract from your testimony. Trial lawyer Elliott Wilcox recently wrote an article for attorneys on this very subject. Called "Monkeys in Business Suits", it's a humorous look at how NOT to compete with the images you use in court.