Need a pathology expert witness? Might want to get your own. Florida's Palm Beach County is set to begin charging outside agencies that want to use one of its Medical Examiner's Office pathologists as an expert witness. The $400 hourly rate would apply to "conferences, depositions, trials and other sworn testimony" in civil cases that involve the county's medical examiners.

The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday limited the ability of patent holders to demand royalties from companies at each stage of the production process. The ruling, against LG Electronics Inc., supports the doctrine that a patent holder who sells an invention exhausts their privilege to control how the buyer uses that invention. In the case, LG Electronics had licensed some patents to Intel. It then subsequently charged several Intel customers of committing patent infringement. LG asserted that the Intel customers owed royalties because they blended non-Intel products with Intel microprocessors and chipsets.

Check out the full story here.

A psychology expert witness has stirred up a bit of controversy in the field of personal injury law with the creation of a true-false test he contends can identify individuals faking injuries or psychological symptoms in order to collect damage awards. Critics decry that almost anyone claiming to have an injury would be branded a "malingerer" under the test. However, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory has endorsed it and even made it a part of its MMPI.

A caveat....

The WSJ article discussing the test notes that the psychologist performs 95% of his expert witness work for the defense.

Expert witness testimony can make or break a case. An interesting blog post, Should You Bring Your Expert Witness Live to Trial?, discusses the pros and cons that litigators should weigh in deciding whether to have their expert witnesses testify live in trial or though videotape. The blog, written by an accomplished group of trial lawyers, advises that generally, a live appearance is preferable. However, sometimes the high testifying fees an expert might charge and/or the scheduling of a witness's time may make a recorded deposition more attractive. Also, some experts may make a better "appearance" on a recording. See the article for further details.

Patent expert witnesses in numerous fields should have a busy year, as there seems to be no letup in the demand for such expertise. The Intellectual Property Group at FTI Consulting recently updated their intellectual property prosecution and litigation statistics to include data for 2006. According to the statistics, the number of patent cases in U.S. District Courts increased to 2,830, a gain of 90 over 2005. Further, the number of patent applications filed in 2006 rose dramatically to an incredible 443,652. There was also a rise in the number trademark cases, going from 3,668 in 2005 to 3,740 in 2006. Check out the full statistics here.

Patent expert witnesses can help your client determine whether a competitor's new product infringes upon their patent. Perhaps need to find an expert witness to determine whether or not allegations made against your client's product are true. How can you find a top quality expert with the specific knowledge you need?

Dennis Crouch, an Associate Professor of Law at the University of Missouri, recently conducted an analysis regarding patent litigation.  His findings indicate that our fictional product infringement description above is a very real problem for many practicing patent attorneys.  He observed that the number of patents being litigated has substantially increased over the last 20 years. "More complaints are being filed and more patents are being asserted with each complaint."1

One way to help ensure that your patent cases reach a successful conclusion is to seek help from an expert witness referral firm such as Round Table Group (RTG).  Round Table Group fulfill requests for patent experts more often than any other type of expert, says RTG's Nick Zafran, who has been researching and compiling the company's extensive billing data.

RTG's research has shown that patent experts bill for more hours than any other category of expert witnesses. "A medical expert often reviews a single person's medical file," says Zafran, "but for patent experts, there can literally be hundreds or thousands of pages of documents to review."

Top-four fields and their rates

When seeking a patent expert, consider billing rates for the top-four fields:

1. Computer scientists.

They examine computer systems, Internet protocols, software source code and operating systems--and earn an average of $425 per hour, according to Round Table Group data.

"They're the most in demand, and the stakes involved in these cases are a lot higher," says Zafran, "so they feel that their rates can be higher."

2. Biomechanical engineers.

These experts review cases dealing with medical devices like heart valves and stents and earn an average of $386 per hour. "It's a very big area now, especially for us," says Zafran.

3. Electrical engineers.

They consult on cases that involve electrical devices, among them circuit boards, semiconductors and electronic power systems. These experts earn an average of $353 per hour, according to RTG data.

4. Mechanical engineers.

Cases typically involve mechanical devices such as pulley systems or automotive components, and engineers earn an average of $291 per hour.

Technical jargon translation

Patent cases usually settle, says Zafran, but attorneys nonetheless seek experts who can translate technical jargon into layman's terms. Round Table Group can make this step of the process easy.

"We can set up a phone interview so an attorney can get a sense of how well someone speaks," says Zafran. "If you went to one of the standard free lists to find an expert, you're not going to get that."

Attorneys also seek experts who have some--but not too much--experience. "They prefer experts that have specific expertise without appearing to be a hired gun," says Zafran.

"Finding someone who has experience with your product who doesn't go from case to case is hard to find on your own."

It is important to note that expert witness referral firms commonly present a rate higher than what an expert demands. The amount varies but is typically around $100. In exchange for this, expert services firms locate and vet hard-to-find experts in all specialties. These experts, at the top of their field, are often not listed on any free "expert" databases.

...excerpt from article written by RTG contributor Lisa Fields.

1  Patently O, patent law blog, Published March 17, 2008: http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/2008/03/patent-litigati.html

Patent expert witnesses are in high demand. Continued advances in technology and the highly competitive nature of the business world ensure that patent litigation will continue to grow for many years to come. Traditionally, finding a qualified expert with specialized knowledge in the scientific field subject to your litigation has been difficult. Accordingly, many expert witness referral firms place an increased emphasis on providing a large panel of patent experts in all relevant fields to assist attorneys in their time of need.

Such assistance, however, does not preclude you from looking for an expert yourself. Let's say you have a potential need for a semiconductor expert. Where should you go first? One of the Internet's free expert databases or a simple Google search? No way. Shame on you for even thinking that. Head to Amazon.com. When evaluating the qualifications of an expert, courts tend to give greater deference those who have published extensively in the field related to the patent in issue. Amazon sells a bevy of technical books on almost any scientific field you might need. A simple search for "semiconductors" turns up literally thousands of books. It is then a small matter of contacting a book's author, who is usually easily located in his or her respective university directory.

Give Amazon.com a try next time you are thinking of using an expert. And while you are there, buy a DVD, or a vacuum cleaner, or a hairbrush for your dog. Or some other item you do not really need. Your patent expert searches can help turn the economy around!

Nick

A New Jersey state judge recently ruled that prosecutors did not steal a defense expert witness slated to testify in the approaching vehicular homicide trial of a state trooper. The defense moved to disqualify the expert witness, an authority on event data recorders, otherwise known as "black boxes," because the defense team had contacted him first. The judge, however, found that there was "no retainer, no payment, no bills for services rendered, no notes, records or memoranda memorializing that relationship..." The judge also noted that in cases where only a few experts in a specialized field exist, an attorney could effectively prevent the opposing side from engaging a witness simply by talking to all of the experts, thus binding them without an expert contract or other evidence of a formal relationship. Not on this judge's watch apparently. Bravo.

Thanks to the Wall Police Blotter for the story.

Psychiatric expert witnesses can be vetted and evaluated in the same manner as any expert witness. An attorney can check work references, perform a Lexis search and speak to other attorneys who have previously engaged the expert in question. Going a bit further, an attorney can also use Daubert Tracker, which is a site purposely designed to track cases that involve the admissibility of expert testimony. Attorneys can enter an expert's name and search all cases, if any, where that expert's ability to testify was challenged before a court and whether that challenge was successful.

Additionally, when evaluating a psychiatric expert witness, or any medical expert, an attorney might want to turn to HealthGrades. HealthGrades is a physician evaluation website that provides a great deal of information on a doctor, including board certifications, disciplinary actions, patient evaluations and education and training. Its use is a great way to confirm a medical expert's credentials.

Finally, anyone practicing in medical litigation of any specialty should check out the book, How Attorneys Can Best Utilize Their Medical Expert Witness: A Medical Expert's Perspective. Unlike most resources however, this one is written by a top medical expert and doctor, not an attorney. The author, Dr Vernon Neppe MD, PhD is a leading neuropsychiatrist/behavioral neurologist, and psychopharmacologist. He also has extensive experience as a forensic psychiatrist/forensic neuropsychiatrist. 

Many expert witness referral firms now use these tools and many others before presenting an expert, but you may also want to use the most relevant tools yourself to minimize unpleasant last-minute surprises.

Nick

John Torkelsen, a damages expert who made millions of dollars as an expert witness in numerous business lawsuits, plead guilty to perjury on Thursday. He admitted that he lied about how he was paid in a securities class-action case. Torkelsen apparently entered into secret fee-shifting deals with several law firms and as a result, those firms were able avoid millions in fees. He was also accused of submitting inflated bills only in successful cases. As such, he was essentially working on a contingent fee basis.

See the Law.com story here.