Many of us work from home offices. Its a smart business model, for some. I have been sending Carol Tice's posting about Homepreneurism to quite a few of our new experts lately. You might enjoy it too. 

The Judicial Conference of the United States recently proposed an amendment to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure that would have an impact on expert witness communications. Specifically, the rule would expand the range of communications covered under the work product privilege between attorneys and expert witnesses. The rule change recommendation, as well as another governing summary judgment, must first be adopted by the Supreme Court before going into effect. Check out the full WSJ story.

Expert Witnesses tend to be smart people. But even smart people do dumb things. (perhaps this blog entry is one such example?) After years of post-case interviews with expert witnesses, I have heard the very best practices, and the very worst things experts do.You may not agree with me on this, and please, feel free to shoot back a comment or two.

One way experts kill their chances to get hired is from forgetting that clients are their bosses, not the other way around.

Look, I know nobody wants to hear that, but this is often a fine line, especially when your clients are asking for advice on their case. But however well (or poorly) that excellent advice is received, it is really the client's decision as to what to do with that advice. The best way I have heard this explained is that the client is the first amongst equals. Bottom line is that it is their case, and experts are there to assist them, and ultimately clients are the ones who sign the checks. At Round Table Group we listen to a lot of conference calls between clients and prospective experts. The calls that go best, and are most likely to result in a retention, are ones where the expert starts the conversation with "How can I be most helpful to you in winning this case?"

A second way experts kill their chances of getting retained is charging what they consider themselves to be worth, rather than what the market considers them worth.

The key here is that expert witness billing rates are determined by both level of unique experience AND market forces. A good example from recent history can be found in the financial services expert witness area. Whereas before say, 2008, bank managers or specialized fund advisers were often difficult to locate and retain, in the last 18 months a huge influx of such experts have entered the expert witness industry, driving rates down. There are several good ways to avoid the trap of out-of-sync billing rates. Start by checking out the article "Expert Witness Billing Rates: What Should I Charge?" for a great conversation about determining billing rates. You might also check out another useful read on "Managing Costs to Clients"

Finally, a third way experts kill their chances of getting retained is by not providing full rates disclosure from the onset.

No client likes to hear about previously unknown billing rates, after the initial interview. Experts should be clear, from the very beginning, about all of their rates, including retainers, travel, and any special testimony or deposition rates they may have. Here is a link to a terrific article on retainers.Nobody likes surprise costs, and clients are no exception.  


Round Table Group can help you get started, and thrive in the expert witness business. Just drop us a line, or call one of our expert services coordinators at 202 595 1338, and see how we can help you, too! Toby Edwards 



 

Round Table Group sent me, and two of our terrific researchers down to DC last week to participate in our 6th INC Magazine 500/0 event. This invitation-only conference highlighted several key note speakers and presenters. And while every one of these entrepreneurial superstars (seriously, i saw one guy in a $3k suit waving a lighter at the end of Jim Collin's presentation) had a different message, two common themes ran through them all: Tough economic times breed opportunities, and that surrounding yourself with the best and the brightest was just plain smart.

I have seen these trends in the expert witness industry as well. Savvy experts are finding new business models to fit these new economic realities, turning economic crisis into opportunity. And clients are, of course, surrounding themselves with the best and the brighest experts, often times much earlier in the process to ensure success.

I was particularly impressed with the CEO of Zip Car talking about how he turned a 'cause into a company', and the importance of employees who believed that their job, their company, was more than just a paycheck. He stressed how hard it was to find such people, and how important it was to keep trying.

At Round Table Group, I get to work with thousands of such motivated, dedicated experts every year. And maybe that has a lot to do with our success; surrounding ourselves with the very best and brightest expert witnesses in the world. Thank you to all the amazing experts, entrepreneurs all,  that we get to work with. 

After so many our experts asked for it, we finally have official  Round Table Group Membership Badges for you to place on your web pages! The membership badge is an excellent way to show your experience, and your network! This is a really cool feature, and you can check out all the graphics options, and the easy-to-install directions,  just by logging on to your expert profile.

In his role as a Senior Research Analyst at Round Table Group, Brian is responsible for sourcing expert talent through a variety of sophisticated research methodologies. He started his career as a Business Development Research Analyst within the Investment Management Research Services division and quickly transitioned into his current research role to strengthen RTG's core offering of expert witness search and referral. Brian has now placed over 170 experts and continues to work with attorneys both nationally and internationally to meet their expert needs. Additionally, Brian develops CLE materials and teaches attorneys how to quickly create targeted expert search campaigns.

Mr. McCarthy attended Gettysburg College where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. He pursued graduate studies in Molecular Genetics at Indiana University-Bloomington where he worked to develop a novel gene therapy for ovarian cancer and was an associate instructor of biology. Brian is currently attending the University of Illinois Graduate School of Library and Information Science where he is completing his Masters of Science in Library and Information Science. A true research enthusiast, Brian also holds the AIRS certifications of Certified Internet Recruiter and Advanced Certified Internet Recruiter.

"What do you like about working with experts?"

There are two aspects that I both enjoy and appreciate about working with experts. First, expert witnesses have an unmatched passion for their discipline. Generally, most experts I interact with have devoted their professional careers to be pioneering thought leaders. They often have the keen ability to amalgamate being practitioners, academics, authors, speakers, and consultants.  Their devotion to the advancement of their field of expertise is unparalleled. When engaging with experts, I appreciate the time they take to craft insightful responses to queries on behalf of our clients.

Secondly, working on several hundred cases per year with numerous potential experts on each, I have the rare opportunity to learn about various subjects from those at the forefront of the field. Discussing cases with experts and mediating preliminary interviews has exposed me to disciplines and concepts that I likely would not have pursued independently and in many cases would not even have known existed. I value each opportunity I have to learn about a subject from an expert and do not take that for granted.

  
"What are the big changes you have seen recently in the industry?"

The unfortunate downturn in the economy has had several impacts on the expert witness industry. During prosperous times, litigators and their clients were less price sensitive and more apt to quickly retain at quoted rates. As the economy worsened, clients became price sensitive and the retention cycle ultimately lengthened. It is now common practice for attorneys to negotiate heavily for more competitive pricing from expert witness as well as expert referral providers. That being said, many experts have proactively reduced their fees to be more competitive; in some drastic cases I have seen rates reduced as much as 50%. Even with competitive fees, end clients expect their attorneys to perform rigorous due diligence ensuring they get the best expert for their money. As a consequence, retention cycles have lengthened as attorneys vet references, perform background research, and request multiple preliminary interviews. 

"Any advice to experts?"

Social networking has become an invaluable resource; it is being used in a myriad of aspects in the legal services and expert witness industry. In particular, many law firms, even top AMLAW 100 firms, and Round Table Group, are using social networking other Web2.0 applications in their marketing and business development plans. As industry continues to accept the value of resources like Twitter, LinkedIn, and blogs, so too have expert witnesses. Expert witnesses utilizing no cost Web2.0 applications have a wonderful opportunity to drastically increase their web presence, allowing them to be more readily identified by attorneys and expert search providers. These applications may be of particular interest to new, independent consultants and experts trying to break into the industry and develop their practice.


 

Expert Witness Industry Trends

One of the best parts of my job with Expert Services is that i get to speak with very unusual people, fairly regularly. Every expert, because they are experts, have a unique way of looking at the world around them. But with all their different takes on things, throughout our talks and emails with experts, we see a few common expert witness industry trends, that might interest you.

There is an increased inclusion of retainers as part of an expert's billing rates. And in addition, we see more experts who are including evergreen retainers (a regularly refunded retainer) with the focus on who is responsible to ensure this evergreen is always full.

Experts are being asked more and more to assist their clients with developing a budget.

Lastly, in large part correlated with the recession, many new experts have entered the expert witness industry in the last 12 months, perhaps as much as a 200% increase, with yet to be determined effect.

I will follow up with some cool data and comments for each of these, and in the meantime, I welcome comments on industry trends you  have observed.

Toby Edwards

Expert Witness Billing Rates: What should I charge?

Inquiring (Expert) Minds Want to Know, Part Three  (part of a series)

Every day Round Table Group fields scores of requests from expert witnesses via phone, email, and live web greeter service, who are seeking answers to pressing business development questions. We have three Expert Witness Services staff members whose sole job is to provide answers to expert witnesses' questions. After several years of speaking with thousands of our colleagues, we have come up with the most frequently ask questions from our network of over 100,000 expert witnesses. Here is one of them, a continuation of a series of conversations about expert witness billing rates.

A new expert from Arizona recently asked me two great questions, one of which is addressed here, and the other in a posting soon to follow.

He asked: "I am an expert in pressure gauges, with 23 years of experience in platform operations in the north Atlantic. I just retired from rigs a few months ago. One of your team contacted me about a consulting opportunity. I'm sending in my information to her, but I don't know what to charge per hour. What should I use as my hourly consulting rate?"

Great question! I start by referring you to some previous entries in this Blog, which offers some useful methods to address this. But let us also use some specific data collected from our referral network of over 100,000 expert witnesses. Most experts have two rates; rates for testifying/deposition, and rates for non-testifying expert witness consultation.

Petroleum Engineering, with decades of oil rig experience, is a unique skill/experience set. A sample survey reveals that the hourly, non-testifying rates for a petroleum engineer expert witnesses range from a low of $100.00 an hour, to a high of $450.00 an hour, with an average rate of about $250.00 an hour. The survey found only 3 instances of a rate for testifying being noted, which averaged to 275.00 an hour.

Of course, a lot of other issues, such as your availability, the duration of the case, retainers, and other expectations should be considered when deciding on your current rate.

For a future Blog, regarding some observed trends in how experts are responding to an industry hit hard by the recession.  Stay tuned...

 

 

 

A very common question we get from Expert Witnesses is "How can I get paid faster?" Indeed, right after "What are the expert witness billing rates of my colleagues?" this is the most commonly asked substantive query.

And of course, Round Table Group has some great solutions.

First, keep your clients posted on how many hours you are working. Some clients prefer weekly updates, others like to know more frequently. This can prevent delays due to 'sticker shock' when your invoice is received, causing unnecessary stress and delays while the issue is negotiated.

Second, find out when your client does their invoicing to their client. If you can coordinate your monthly invoicing with their billing cycle, delays of up to 30 days can be eliminated.

At Round Table Group we handle all that for you.

We consult with our clients on invoicing cycles and due dates, and remind our experts when that date is approaching, to ensure your invoice is swiftly processed.

 

Expert Witness Billing Rates: What should I charge?

Inquiring (Expert) Minds Want to Know (part of a series)

Every day Round Table Group fields scores of requests from expert witnesses who are seeking answers to pressing business development questions. We have three Expert Witness Services Coordinators; staff members whose sole job is to provide answers to expert witnesses' questions. After several years of speaking with thousands of our colleagues, we have come up with the most frequently ask questions from our network of over 100,000 expert witnesses. Here is one of them, a continuation from last week's entry.

Janet F. asks us: "I am an expert in Pharmaceutical Marketing. What should I use as my hourly consulting rate?"

Great question Janet! I start by referring you to last week's entry, which offers some useful methods to address this. But let us also use some specific data collected from our referral network of over 100,000 expert witnesses. Most experts have two rates; rates for testifying/deposition, and rates for non-testifying expert witness consultation.

Pharmaceutical Marketing: These are big cases, often with huge stakes not just for clients involved, but for the industry as a whole. Expert witnesses in this discipline tend to be MBAs, JDs, MDs, and/or have many years of experience in hands-on sales and marketing within the pharmaceutical industry. A sample survey reveals that the hourly, non-testifying rates of pharmaceutical marketing expert witnesses range from a low of $200.00 an hour, to a high of $650.00 an hour, with an average rate of about $400.00 an hour. The average testifying rate was $95.00 higher. If you would like to learn more about being an expert witness, check out this link full of useful information. www.roundtablegroup.com/experts/index.cfm

World Class Expert Witness Service

Hello, allow me to introduce myself. I am Toby M. Edwards, VP of Operations and Director of Expert Services at Round Table Group. I have an awesome job. I get to work with experts every day. I love talking to experts, they always have such interesting backgrounds and fascinating stories. I'm lucky that so much of my career involves working with them.

I head the team of Expert Services Coordinators; full-time, highly trained professionals whose sole purpose is to assist RTG Experts in a responsive and timely manner. The Team fields scores of calls every day, and hundreds of email covering just about any question concerning our experts, from the simple "How do I update my profile" to the more complex requests, such as reviewing CVs and advising on average billing rates, to checking on current invoices and payments.

I started out as a researcher here at RTG back in 2003, doing thorough and rigorous research every day to find the most talented experts, and working with those experts to present them to our clients for expert witness consulting gigs. It was a terrific job, and I bring those experiences with me every day now that I work solely with Expert Services. The big difference between then and now is that in Expert Services, we do so much more than just connect experts and clients. Our responsibility is to ensure that every RTG expert is supported and provided with world-class customer service.

Working with RTG is much more than just getting a profitable consulting gig with a top law firm; it's also about having a committed and professional Expert Support Network at your fingertips. I look forward to working with you.

As statements of an expert witness's "academic life," CVs can tell one story. However, some expert witness consultants have broad experience or knowledge of multiple areas and maintain multiple CVs to accentuate different aspects of their expertise.

Steven Babitsky warns experts against this practice for many reasons. He says, "It smacks of dishonesty... the expert only presents each client with part of the picture and is therefore suppressing information about herself."

If the expert is, in fact, a regular witness on several topics, the opposition will likely find any available information. In their cross-examination, they will plant doubt about the expert witness by exposing "hidden" information. In his book, How to Become a Dangerous Expert Witness, Babitsky highlights a potentially damaging situation in the scenario below.

"Counsel: Do you tell them that your CV is accurate and complete even though it leaves out an area of your expertise?

Expert: That's not the case, it's just a different way to describe and emphasize my expertise.

Counsel: You change your CV so that it's more likely that you'll get hired in each circumstance. Is that a fair characterization?"

Maintaining multiple expert witness CVs can give opposing counsel unnecessary ammunition to discredit the expert and should be avoided.

Clark