I was speaking with an expert in DC one month back, a former college friend, who regularly bids on government contracts. He was interested in becoming an expert witness and was picking my brain in exchange for a meaty cheeseburger like only the DC Chophouse can serve. I told him that experts set their own prices, and that an interesting new trend was that many expert witnesses are now negotiating that rate more, considering the value of building a business relationship with a particular client.

His reply is interesting to me. In his line of work, the projects he wants to see usually come with a maximum dollar amount the client is willing to pay. I wonder if this approach might work in the expert witness industry? Could total cost of the project (report, etc) be predetermined? Ex: Experts do a report for a predetermined fee. What do you think? Does that model seem useful for the expert witness industry?





 

 Automotive recall experts, warranty experts and automotive engineers of all types could soon see increased work due to the flurry of probable lawsuits against Toyota. A CNN Money article notes that the cost to Toyota from settlements could even be higher than the estimated $2 billion price tag for handling just the recalls.In addition, with the huge pressures the larger automobile industry faces, and the threat of even more major car brands going out of business, we see a growing demand for such experts.

I love London, and there are a couple of really good conferences our UK members (and any experts traveling abroad) might want to consider attending.

This year's Annual Bond Solon Expert Witness Conference is Friday the 12th of November, 2010 at the Church House Conference Centre in London. This is I believe the largest gathering of expert witnesses in the UK, and offers some terrific opportunities to develop your skills, grow your network, and build your business. Bond Salon offers training for expert witnesses with non-legal backgrounds. With a stellar reputation, this should be an exceptionally good conference. You can sign up now, and get a special 'early bird' price. 

You can develop your expert witness business by attending the "Marketing and Managing your Expert Witness Business" seminar on February 24th, 2010, presented by the Expert Witness Institute, a non-profit advocacy and training organization based in London aimed at working with expert witnesses.

The Society for Expert Witnesses is holding their annual conference on May 14-15th in Northampton. This non-profit organization is run 'by experts for exerts', and, among other benefits, offers a new expert mentoring program.

Maybe I will see you there?
 

Depends who you ask. But 71% of corporate counsels, and 61% of private practice lawyers agree that pricing and fees is the #1 issue facing the legal industry, according to the recent Lex/Nex survey. Undoubtedly fodder for a blogosphere feeding frenzy, this commissioned survey also shows that most (77%) private practice lawyers believe their clients are too focused on cost.

The impact of these, and other noted trends, has a serious impact on the expert witness industry.

"What litigation trends should I expect from 2010?" one of my favorite-to-work-with experts asked me a couple of week back. Its was a question I had been hearing a lot lately, and I had been asking it almost as often. Here is what I see as some of the trends in the expert witness industry.

For 2010, I see three major trends in the expert witness industry: Earlier identification and retaining of experts,  increased sensitivity to cost by clients, and an increased amount of litigation in environmental damages, financial misconduct, and in the area of labor and employment. What does this mean for expert witnesses?

First, there will be a greater amount of time between the search/identification/interviewing/retaining of experts by clients on the one hand, and the actual start date of experts, on the other. Experts will need to be able to work within a longer time frame, requiring careful expert-client coordination on invoicing.

Second, and we saw this more and more last year, Clients will be much more cost-sensitive, requesting budgets from experts, relying more on video conferencing and other cost saving measures, and taking a harder line on negotiating rates. Experts who include this cost sensitivity in to their marketing and presentations will have an advantage over their competitors.

Finally, based on industry reports and expert observations, we expect to see an increased demand for expert witnesses in many areas of litigation, perhaps particularly in environmental damages matters, in employment and labor disputes, as well as in continued (and increasingly broad) litigation from the fall-out of the financial collapse of 2008-09.

Table Group Group membership can help you take full advantage of the latest industry trends, with profile reviews, links to conferences, and marketing ideas. Just reach out to our skilled expert services coordinators, who are standing by to assist. 


  

Working from home is a growing trend, according to Caroline Tice, in her blog posting about "small business owners running viable businesses from their homes." or Homepreneurs. Anecdotal evidence has lead me to believe most expert witnesses also work from home-based office. If you are one of the over 13 million homepreneurs in America, you probably already know what I will be be suggesting, but for everyone else, especially new experts, just starting up in the field, here are some things every expert witness needs for working at home. Undoubtedly, this list will grow.

Get up to speed on  web conferencing and internet presentation skills, such as Webex. I tried the trial version of Webex and was pleasantly surprised on how easy it was to install, understand, and use! Its an easy way to show your clients that it does not matter where you work from. Get up to speed on video conferencing, and offer your clients the opportunity to see you, even if they don't have the ability to reciprocate. Most new laptops and monitors have small cameras built into them already, but you might also want to consider investing 30-80 bucks or so into a good web cam, which can mount on your monitor or rest on a desk or shelf. Tip: place it so that the background behind you reflects the type of image you want to present.
 
Make sure you have regularly scheduled professional face time with colleagues, at conferences, association meetings, continuing education, etc. One of the hazards of working from home, as opposed to a large office or university department, is isolation from your colleagues, and from potential clients! Professional conferences are an excellent way to keep up with the newest developments and ideas and people in your field.

My own personal necessity is a good a lock on the refrigerator, buts that's another story.

I's like to hear from other homepreneurs on what they think of this post!

Twice in my years here at Round Table Group an expert has withdrawn from a case. This most recent time was back in 2008. When we finally got the wayward expert witness on the phone, he refused to say why he withdrew, only that it wasn't worth his while. Speculation around the virtual water cooler was that nefarious corporate pressure had forced the expert's withdrawal.But all speculation aside, there are some fairly serious consequences to abandoning a client mid-case as Edward Hoffman writes in his posting.

True Story: There was a second example, but it turns out the expert had actually died mid-case. Fortunately for the left-in-the-lurch client, she was using a professional expert witness referral firm that was able to draw on the vast network of Round Table Group expert witnesses and professional staff to find a replacement in a timely manner.

Many expert witnesses are new to the industry. Its logical, of course, as they have been spending the last few (or few dozen) years actually becoming an expert. So how can experts get their name and reputation into the awareness of those who need them? Round Table Group can help! Here are four ways to market your expertise.

Develop a powerful and compelling web presence, by creating a professional web site that includes your CV, publications, conferences, awards, previous expert witness work, and of course your contact information. Link this to your professional blog, if you have the time to put into one. Web sites are getting easier for the layman to create, or invest in having a professional web developer build one for you. If you go this route, be certain to get a firm price quote before you start.

Use your social networks, both the personal 'hand shake' type of network of colleagues and associates, as well as professional internet social networking services, such as LinkedIn. Let your colleagues know that you are actively seeking expert witness opportunities. Many will already be in the industry, and may have opportunities, or at least some advice to share with you.

Join an expert witness referral service. We can do much of your marketing for you. There are some key things to look for in a good expert witness referral service, such as reputation, service, geographic and area of expertise scope, and of course, client base.

Consider consulting with a reputable marketing firm, particularly if they specialize in working with expert witnesses. Like your area of expertise, marketing is a highly specialized field, with its own experts. 

Go to pertinent conferences where potential clients will gather in large numbers. These are great places to meet people, learn about the current litigation trends, and of course, pick up some great swag. 

Round Table Group has a whole team of expert services coordinators who are ready to assist you in building your expert witness business.
 

 

Building your business means planning ahead. Plan ahead for 2010. Here are three links that every expert witness should check out for 2010

The INTA Conference, in Boston: Every expert should go to some upcoming conferences. Its a great way to build networks and insight. And if you possibly can, you should go to the International Trademark Association conference. Its well worth your time. There are so many people to meet, experts, entrepreneurs, lawyers, firms of all sizes, vendors, terrific guest speakers. I got to INTA this last year, 2009, in Seattle. It was a a really good conference, well manged, well attended. We met some terrific folks from West-law, and of course Bob and Shelly at Applied Marketing Science, and hundreds of experts and independent consultants who stopped by to say hi to us. This next year its in Boston, May 22 through the 26. Round Table Group will be there!

Learn Business Develop Ideas. I really like this Blog that Meredith writes for Expert Communications, an expert witness training and marketing firm. She writes better and more clearly than most  Every expert should learn how to promote themselves, and their business, and there are some good resources for experts in her postings. Check out her Blog posting on retainers, as well.

Hire the Best Expert: I just had my end-of-year sit down with my 'tax guy', who along with many other fine qualities, recognized early on my near total ignorance about taxes in general. It is always an hour well spent. Many experts work from home offices, or have a small business, and the tax implications of both are significant.When i went looking for a good tax professional a few years back, i wanted to see certifications, and industry standards (like the NATP or ACPA), academic degrees, evidence of continuing education, and specifically, i needed expertise in new home ownership, and work from home small businesses. What expertise do you need from a tax professional? Finding the right tax professional is a smart business development move.
Toby 

At the end of every year, I always have a whole list of things I need to do before the end of the year. Things such as year-end reviews of my staff, making sure I have submitted all my 2009 expenses (which usually means scraping up the receipts), budget planning 2010-11, reviewing our company insurance plans, and so forth.

And for expert witnesses, it's the time of the year to do the three things all expert witnesses should do: touch base with everyone they've invoiced, update their public CV/Web page/profiles, and finally, speak with a financially savvy professional to see how being an expert witness may have tax implications. (This is the part where I say that I am completely unqualified to offer any legal or financial advice, yada yada ...).

The first of the three things all expert witnesses should do before the end of the year is speak with every firm (or better yet, person) they sent an invoice to this year. While verifying that they have all of the latest contact information for any tax documentation, experts also get to check in with clients, wish them a happy new year, and strengthen their relationships a bit as well.

The second thing every expert witness should do is to update their public presence, such as their professional Web page, CV, and expert witness referral firm profile. If you are a Round Table Group expert, you can update your profile right here! If you don't yet have your own Web page, there are quite a few easy-to-use packages out there for less than 30 bucks.

The third thing every expert should do is to understand how their expert witness income and perhaps their expenses pertain to their taxes. As someone who works from home, for example, I am able to claim certain expenses by virtue of the square footage of my office. Especially for those new to the expert witness industry, it's worth the hour appointment to review 2009, and perhaps plan better for 2010.

Thanks everyone for all your cool comments and suggestions. As this list keeps growing, I fear it will need to be re-posted as the five things every expert witness should do before the end of the year, or maybe it will require a whole new blog. Send in your replies!