Personal Injury Law

Expert Fees: Court Ruling in New Jersey

The Kentucky Injury Lawyer Blog reports that a federal judge in New Jersey held the line on rampant expert fees last week, holding that while neurosurgeons should be able to demand steep prices for their time, $7,000 for two hours is "near to being extortionate." I like when courts spare us the euphuisms and start throwing around words like extortionate.

The expert, a neurosurgeon in Philadelphia, charges $5,000 for the first hour of deposition and $2,000 for every hour thereafter. Please don't extrapolate that over the course of a year. Your head will explode.

I have mixed feelings about this issue. I really think experts should be allowed to largely charge what they want. If they want to price themselves out of the market because they don't like to testify all that much, I'm fine with that. Generally, I hate interference with what someone wants to charge if there is a willing buyer on the other side. Alex Rodriguez is not overpaid. He is worth exactly what the Yankees were willing to pay him. For better (usually) or for worse (sometimes), that is your free market economy.

Full post as published by Maryland Injury Lawyer Blog on January 11, 2010 (boomark / email).