Professor Lynn Rosenblum takes us behind the scenes of expert witnessing in the toy industry, revealing how deep subject matter expertise transforms into compelling testimony. Her path from Mattel’s Director of Marketing to Associate Professor of Toy Design at Otis College has given her a unique vantage point on the industry she loves. Drawing from experiences manufacturing toys in eleven countries and working with companies of all sizes, she brings unparalleled knowledge to her role as an expert witness. “I am the history of toys,” she shares, highlighting how her lifetime of experience creates authoritative testimony.

The conversation delves into practical wisdom on navigating depositions with confidence, building rapport with legal teams, and balancing academic responsibilities with expert witness engagements. Her approach to preparation stands out—reading every document, examining physical samples, and maintaining professional poise under pressure. For attorneys, her insights on working effectively with experts prove invaluable, while professionals considering expert witness work will appreciate her candor about billing practices, preparation routines, and maintaining ethics throughout the process.

Whether you’re a practicing attorney seeking to better understand the expert witness perspective or a professional wondering how your specialized knowledge might translate to the courtroom, this episode offers both practical guidance and inspiration.

Ready to discover how expertise becomes evidence? Listen now, and learn why knowing your subject matter deeply remains the foundation of effective testimony.

Episode Transcript:

Note: Transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.

Host: Noah Bolmer, Round Table Group

Guest: Lynn Rosenblum, Professor of Toy Design at Otis College

Noah Bolmer: Welcome to Engaging Experts. I’m your host Noah Bolmer, and I’m excited to welcome Professor Lynn Rosenblum to the show. She’s the associate professor of toy design for Otis College. Professor Rosenblum has over 40 years of experience in consumer products and holds an MBA in marketing from USC. Professor Rosenblum, thank you for joining me today on Engaging Experts.

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: I am so excited to be here, Noah. Thanks for having me.

Noah Bolmer: You have been in consumer products for decades, including an 8-year stint as Mattel’s Director of Marketing. How did you first become involved in expert witnessing?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: Let’s see, interesting enough, I’ve gotten involved—you know how they have experts that are like fact witnesses for companies? I had a couple companies that I was at, and I don’t want to say which ones, and those particular companies were involved in lawsuits. In some cases, I wasn’t even involved with the product or the item in question, but they deposed me. It is sometimes because we are involved in this particular business, they’ll come in and just depose everyone and that’s what happened in these two cases. I’d say those were early cases. Perhaps I’m dating myself, 1990s, early 2000s, and I’d already been in consumer products and toys for many years at that point. It was a good place for me to get grounded and understand what a deposition was. I had never done one personally, which is a good thing. I had to do them as a fact witness for two different companies. That was the start.

Then as to the particular question, doing it more professionally I had someone come and ask me, “Are you an expert in this particular subject area?” I’m not going to tell you what that area was, [but] I’ll give you a couple areas I’m an expert in and maybe you can guess, and don’t guess. I’m an expert in dolls. I’m an expert in stuffed toys. I’m an expert in Polly Pocket. I’m an expert in trolls and troll dolls. Not those kinds of trolls—and so the person came and asked me, “Are you an expert in teddy bears?” We’ll use that example. I of course said, “Yes.” Because I’m an expert in that too. That’s where I started getting my experience and doing actual expert witnessing for a particular case.

Noah Bolmer: Did somebody come in and show you the ropes? Did they say, “Here are some of the things to expect. These are some of the things that are going to happen, and this is how you’re going to prepare.” Or did you hit the ground running?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: The first fact witness case that I did was at a large company. They had a team of lawyers and one of them in particular was a lady I admired. I’d done some licensing work with doing contracts, she was very smart, and she was the first person to go through and tell me what to expect. Interestingly enough, that experience [was where] I learned the most. I’ve had a lot of great lawyers that have trained me since then, but she was the tops. Over the years, that experience led us to work together at that company and it spawned a friendship that’s decades long. I’m grateful for that first experience.

Noah Bolmer: As somebody who has been a fact witness, in other words, a person who is in some way tied to the facts of the case, and an expert witness, which is obviously somebody who is brought in for their specific knowledge, do you find that there’s [more] of a crossover between being a fact witness and an expert witness?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: Being a fact witness in the beginning helped me understand what a deposition is. That’s more valuable, what it was for. Now, what carries me through, I hate to say this, is my age. The older you get the smarter you get, and if you stay in a particular industry, which again I do consumer products, but toys are my specialty. You could say I’ve been doing this for 40 years, but at the same time, if I count from birth to like twenty years, I was playing with toys then [or] doing things that were toy related. I’m going to say I have almost 70 years of toy experience.

Noah Bolmer: Let’s talk about those initial phone calls. Somebody calls you up, and says, “I need a toy expert. I need somebody who has worked on substances like Floman GAK, which you had a hand in [during] your Mattel days.” What are some of the questions that you ask to make sure that you that it’s going to be a good fit, and that you’re the right expert for this particular case? What are some of the questions that newer expert witnesses can expect to be asked by the engaging attorney?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: One of the first things is to—and some of this may seem like common sense, but honestly, someone calls you. Being an expert witness can be quite lucrative. Some folks that I’ve talked to are interested in being expert witnesses, there’s a tendency to want to rush into it. And what I always say is get a good understanding of the case first and foremost. That’s the first thing that you should do, an expert witness case is super important. You have to be able to have it be something that you can get behind and when I say get behind the case may go [on] for three days, three months, or three years. So, you have to have a good understanding of the case, a good understanding of the position, and the place that you are going to be in it. You have to have a clear distinction of who you will be working with. Some places have huge law firms. Some have a single lawyer. It’s always helpful—I am fine if I work with different people through the process, but I always like to know those things up front. Sometimes they don’t know and I always give them a chance to let me think because again, it’s a real commitment to go on one of these cases and have a particular position.

Noah Bolmer: It’s interesting you bring up trial teams. The composition of a trial team can be quite large. It can be attorneys, paralegals, perhaps assistants, and other expert witnesses. What’s it like engaging with some of those parties, and do you prefer to work on a small trial teams directly with the attorney?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: I don’t have a preference and I’ve done both. [Much] depends on personality fit, work style, obviously, some of the larger law firms in some cases will even have hundreds of people working for them. That’s nice because there are certain perks and things that go along with that. As long as you’re staying close to the case, even if you’re working with a team or one person, that’s the best way to do it. You want to be sure what’s in your report is what you talk about in deposition, and you want to be sure about what you talk about in deposition is what you talk about at trial. Even though large law firms are good about making sure there’s that consistency. Oftentimes, you will feel like you’ve worked with one attorney even though you’ve worked with a team of several, so it depends. I enjoy all of the work and another thing I like to do that goes to the question you asked before is I love to ask for things, if there are things that I can utilize for the case. I may want to talk to the head of sales or I may want to have samples of the two products so I can physically examine them. I’m always—I think the attorneys appreciate it. I’ve always got my list of things that I want. Oftentimes, when I speak to someone at the start of a case I will ask right away because I have enough experience after almost twenty-five cases to know what I’m going to want.

Noah Bolmer: When you talk about getting samples, I imagine that that would come into play a lot in in products liability cases. For instance, do you use models or do you use the actual toys in front of juries?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: A couple things. One is I have not done any product liability, that is a separate area and can get busy in toys. I do [many] cases where you can be talking about issues of standard practice in the toy industry, so in some of those cases the samples may be used for preparation. You may look at the particular sample and want to compare two dolls. Where they were made? How they were made? How they were sewn? Are their looks the same? Was the advertising the same? Was the packaging the same? Where were they sold? The list can go on, and on, and on. You’re using those samples many times for me to confirm my opinions. My opinions are usually something that I have right away, and they’re usually good, thoughtful, and true, but I like to have the samples to make sure.

Noah Bolmer: How do you get ready for a case? Say you’re going into a contentious deposition or you’re going into a case where there might be some cross examination. I have experts who say they have routines. “I like to do yoga.” “I like to drink coffee.” Or “No, I like to fast. You can’t eat anything before a case.” Do you have any pretrial routines or anything that helps you get ready for the big day?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: Good sleep is important however you get it. If you have to knock yourself out or if you have to drink a certain kind of cocoa. I have my routines. I won’t reveal them, but having good sleep. Anybody that calls me before a trial or a deposition at 11:00 PM the night before, one is never going to get me because you wouldn’t believe what time I go to sleep. Even though I said I wouldn’t reveal it. Plan nutrition for the person who said they fast.

I’ve talked to other expert witnesses and they’re waiting for the attorney so they can prepare. For me, I just do it. I do ultimate preparation. I read every piece of paper and every exhibit. I try to read—I don’t try, I do read the reports from the rebuttal to my report. I read their depositions. It’s a lot of paper and I have [had] other experts tell me, “How do you do that?” Frankly, I just do it and I let the attorneys—because when I’m sitting in deposition, or I’m at trial, and someone puts a piece of paper in front of me and it says in my materials that I’ve seen it, I better be able to say I’ve seen it. Now, once in a while I think there’s so much paper you’ll take a look at something and it’ll take you a minute to recall whether you saw it in someone’s report, saw it in deposition, or whether you saw it in your own report. It is a lot, but I try to make sure as much as possible to look at everything so that if I’m asked, I can answer.

Noah Bolmer: Speaking of reports, let’s talk about your report writing strategy. Do you typically have to write an expert witness report for an engagement?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: I’d say it’s typical. 

Noah Bolmer: What things go in your expert witness report? Are you handed a template or skeletal outline when doing an expert witness report or do you typically generate them whole cloth?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: I generate them whole cloth because I’ve been doing it long enough. There are a lot of things that are standard in these. I would say your background is standard, although I always take mine and tailor it for whatever the case is. If the case is about dolls, then I’ll talk more about my doll experience. If the case is more about standard practices in the toy industry, then I’ll talk more about executive roles and how I’ve used those standard practices. If it’s about consumer products, I may go a little heavy on that. My background is so vast that I’ll hone in on whatever’s important for everyone in the case to know about me. The  documents and things you’re looking at are standard. I don’t think I’m giving away anything there. Then, your opinions and how you back them up. For me, different firms have different formats, but I usually give them to them and if they want to put them into their format, that’s fine. I’m good with all of that now, and it feels [much] better. But sometimes it’s a surprise. Somebody wants something completely different. It does happen.

Noah Bolmer: You were talking earlier about reading the expert witness reports or the rebuttal reports from the other side. Have you yourself written rebuttal reports?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: I’ve written a couple in my career. The hardest part about that, especially in an industry like mine where everybody knows everybody in the toy industry, is somebody writes a rebuttal report against you. You have to just- you can’t take it personally. It’s what happens. I’d love to say a few more things, but I can’t. You have to trust your own experience. I have never been on a case where I have been disqualified, so that’s quite a record, and speaks to my reputation. That is another thing, I’ve tried to brand myself on my reputation, my ethics in the industry, and how long I’ve been in the industry. I try to stand on those values.

Noah Bolmer: What are some of the things that expert witnesses can look forward to in a long deposition? I’ve had expert witnesses tell me that they can go four hours, eight hours, sometimes even multiple days, although that does seem to be rare. I’ve had expert witnesses tell me that depositions are more difficult than the trial itself at times. What’s your experience in depositions?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: I love them.

Noah Bolmer: How so?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: I was a high school debater. I’m trying to remember my—I’ll give a shout out to my high school Poway High in San Diego. We won trophy after trophy. I can see a few of them sitting in my office. I still [have] them. Our speech coach would say, “Tell them what you’re going to tell them, and then tell them what you told them.” Depositions are a lot like that. Of course, everybody has their own rules for depositions. Obvious things like, listen to the question. If you are afraid of public speaking, depositions won’t be the greatest for you. Also don’t think they’re being mean, difficult, or impersonal with you. Don’t take it personally. It’s hard.

I will tell you one good deposition story. A particular attorney was questioning me and he kept questioning, questioning, questioning, and I wouldn’t give him the answer he wanted. Then, he said something along the lines of I think we were talking about, I’m trying to remember, I think it was about inventing toys. Then, he asked me some kind of question along the lines of, “Would you ever talk to me about that? Would you ever consider having a cup of coffee with me and talking about that?” I was like, “Sure, I’ll talk to anybody.” Then, later, I’m sure he would deny this, and I don’t remember his name or anything, but he walked out of the room and caught me in the hallway. He said, “You’re good. We’re going to have to hire you on our next case.” Several years later, I did get a call from someone that he had referred.

Noah Bolmer: As somebody who enjoys depositions and who has done your fair share of them, is there anything an otherwise qualified expert can do to improve their performance with things like public speaking, not being nervous, being ready outside of the facts of the case, and understanding your role as an expert? Some of the more intangible things like demeanor. What are some of the things that experts can do to improve their overall performance in front of other people?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: That’s a great question. Being calm and again respecting both sets of counsel, yours, and theirs. The people on both sides are just trying to do their job. Sometimes that’s a hard thing to think about. People think a lot about expert witnessing as opposing, etcetera. Lawsuits are serious. As an expert witness, you’re there to give opinions and it’s important that you’re truthful. You give those opinions without what I would say any kind of bias. It’s the same thing in your deposition. You want to make sure that you’re clear headed. That’s why sleep is so important. That is the number one rule. Another thing I’d say that’s great, because I’ve done it both ways, is if you can get them to start at 9:00 am, that is the best thing that can happen. I have had depositions that have started earlier and just having that little bit extra of sleep and time to get ready.

I’d also say there’s the whole personal grooming side of it, and that is wear something that’s professional. You feel well put together. Something that you might—I just did a big series of lectures for the LA Public Library on the history of toys. I felt good in a particular suit and a particular—it sounds silly, pair of shoes, etcetera. When I got up and [spoke] in front of one hundred people I felt good and well put together. I had my next deposition, my thoughts immediately—I sound like I need a Hollywood stylist or something to be the expert witness in toys. But again, it’s like anything else, if you were to go do something important, you might think, “Wow, when I wore X, Y, Z, that was great.” To go to that old— I’m trying to remember the first time I heard it, maybe it was the seventies, dating myself again, but dress for success.

Go in there, have the attitude that you are going to do your best and that you’re going to knock it out of the park. Sometimes you don’t do your best. Sometimes you miss a question or you- I can’t think of any time that was disastrous, but I can think of times where I would say to myself, “I wish I’d answered it that way.” That’s another piece of advice to first timers or even people who have been doing this for years. Don’t beat yourself up too much but do be serious about it.

Noah Bolmer: Let’s move to some of the more general. How do you get off on the right foot for a new expert witness engagement? What at the things that both parties, both the expert and the attorney, can and should be doing to ensure an efficient, effective, and enjoyable expert witness engagement?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: It’s just setting down the expectations and following through as soon as possible, or respecting each other’s time. Being honest. Those are all things that I try to do. Again, as I mentioned, it can be non-contentious, but it can be maybe uncomfortable is the right word with billing and how to do it et cetera. I always make sure that those things are clear in the beginning and I always make sure that I never send a client bill or have a lawyer send a bill to a client, until everyone has agreed that those are the particular hours. I try to detail that information. I have changed those hours before if someone said, “l don’t—“ I want to make absolutely sure that everyone is happy with my work and I want to make sure my work is honest work.

Noah Bolmer: That’s a good segue. I’d like to talk about billing for a moment. What is your billing profile like? Do you take a non-refundable retainer? Do you prefer hourly rates or project rates? Do you have different rates depending on what it is you’re doing or traveling? What is your billing schedule look like?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: It is different for everyone. That’s another thing, I always establish a relationship for what the client needs. Some companies are small and, especially this year with the tariffs, half the companies don’t know if they’re going to get their money, be paid, or whatever. Always try to be the one that is trying to work with them, trying to make them comfortable. Again, as an expert, they can be comfortable with your qualifications, but it’s also nice if they’re comfortable with your working style, your demeanor, your ethics, your values, and your ability to be on time. Another thing that surprises me when I’ve spoken to other experts is the whole concept of being on time. That should be one of your best skills. Things happen for everyone, but that’s one that’s important, because when you’re dealing with lawyers, they’re billing clients large amounts of money. You want to make sure that you’re there on time. You’re in court on time. That the deadlines [are met], you’re there on the day the expert reports are due, regardless. If you’re going to get paid for every single second of the day, you should be available on that day, and that way if they need you for something until those reports are final, in, and due you’re ready to assist in any way. You’re an integral part of the team so I don’t think there’s anything— I try not to be blasé about any of it. I try to be serious and I am very serious about the whole process.

Noah Bolmer: As somebody with a full-time teaching job and a sought-after expert witness, how do you manage your time?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: I have [many] late nights. Early mornings. I’m lucky that the primary issues in my expert witness are toys. I do some other consumer products and I do some other subject matter, but if it’s primary toy and I’m going to teach primary toy, it’s hard to explain, but it just keeps the brain moving forward. Toy, toy, toy, toy, and because I love it so much and I teach it, it’s a natural place for me to be because I’m teaching it. This isn’t necessarily the answer to your question, but I think it’s interesting, is I’m teaching it in the classroom. I told you about doing the lectures at the LA Public Library so that’s teaching subject matter about the toy industry. Then when I’m doing an expert report, I’m in a deposition, or I’m in trial, I’m teaching about an aspect of the toy industry. I’m always in the teaching role. I love being a teacher. It’s the job I was meant to do and being a professor, I just got promoted to associate professor, it’s a dream. I enjoy it.

Noah Bolmer: Do you find that your work as a professor also aids you in performing as an expert witness?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: Yes, in a couple ways. One is that I’m not afraid to speak to groups. Two is I’m not afraid to speak to an audience that doesn’t necessarily agree with me. That would be my students, sometimes. Most of the time they do. I would say there are other things like you can have access to many things, but being at a college, there are certain academic resources and such. The two pair nicely together.

Noah Bolmer: Are there any red flags to look out for or even outright negative experiences that you’ve had as an expert witness that turned out to be learning experiences for you?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: I don’t know if they were outright negative experiences. What I would say is I’m always learning. I’m always learning different things. I’ve been lucky, but things about billing arrangements. Things about particular subject matter upfront. Asking for those things I need that I alluded to earlier. It’s hard to say because I’ve been doing this for such a time now that those negative experiences, if there are any at all, are so far in the rearview window, there [are many] fun memories and hopefully those will continue. Like I said, since I don’t do product liability, my particular cases, I’m learning. I’m educating. They are important things to people. It’s their brands, it’s their products. I had a particular case or two where people wanted me to value toy collections, and so when people had losses or lost certain aspects of their collection, to value those you know, it’s hard to know because some of that value sometimes can be just in the emotional values. That’s important. That’s not hard to know, so that is more expensive than anything out there that you can monetarily value. There are many, many, many different aspects. I’m always learning bad or good. It’s like, “Wow, didn’t know that.” I’m sure I’ll be learning until my very last case.

Noah Bolmer: In our preshow, you were chit chatting a bit and had mentioned Round Table Group. Have you found expert witness referral agencies to be useful to your expert witness practice in general?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: Yes, as incremental. I still get [many] referrals on my own or from people in the industry. One thing and another but having a relationship with the agencies is great. It’s great with Round Table because they handle [many] of those little behind the scene details, not for the case, but for the what I would say is vetting of experts for cases. Then some of the billing arrangements and things they will handle. I always enjoy the people I work with and the more cases I get from Round Table, the more people I get to know. And I got asked to be on the podcast, which is exciting. I genuinely love what I do. At least right now. This isn’t—you haven’t seen me after I’ve stayed up seven nights in a row working on an expert report, editing, editing, editing, editing, editing, editing. Maybe some of those days, I’m a little more tired or grumpy, but for the most part I find it fascinating, interesting, and exhilarating to be able to share what I would say from my perspective are the truths about my industry. Where I get fired up is when I see things that I either know are not true or are not—and sometimes it’s just something that I haven’t experienced or that hasn’t been my experience. Toy companies are all different. Products are all different. Kids are all different, and now we have other target audiences in the toy industry that we serve. Parents, grandparents, and then we have this whole kid adult area where many products are collected by adults who are really kids. It’s fascinating and evolving all at the same time.

Noah Bolmer: Before we wrap up, do you have any last advice for expert witnesses out there or attorneys working with expert witnesses?

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: Just know your stuff. I came to being in this particular expert part of my career much later, I’m so glad I did it that way because I in fact can now say things with quite a bit of certainty. I’ve worked on the client side. I’ve worked on the agency side. I’ve worked for small toy companies. I’ve worked for large toy companies. I’ve worked for medium toy companies. I’ve worked regionally all over the United States and the world. I’ve done toy manufacturing in and I forget how many countries something like eleven different countries. I understand the licensing process. I’ve done toy commercials, so I understand advertising. There’s a 360 approach. It’s interesting.

I’ll add just one aside here. I teach History of Toys. There is a particular book and a syllabi, as you would see for any class, but what I always tell my students is I am the “History of Toys.” At almost 70 years old. I’ve worked in a lot of places. I’ve seen a lot of toys. I was the first person who did this or that, and telling them many of my toy stories and so thereby, I am an expert in the toy industry. What I’d say is it’s good to start building a career, but make sure you’re an expert in the subject matter and build on that. Try to be better. Try to read. Meet people. Network. I’ve been lucky to continue in [many] of the same subject matter as well, and the older I get I think I’m more of an expert every day. I’m still learning and it’s fantastic.

Noah Bolmer: Professor Rosenblum, thank you for joining me today.

Professor Lynn Rosenblum: It was so wonderful. I love to talk about toys and I love to talk about expert witnessing. Two of my favorite things. Thank you, Noah.

Noah Bolmer: And thank you as always to our listeners for joining us for another edition of Engaging Experts.

Lynn Rosenblum, Associate Professor of Toy Design for Otis College of Art and Design

Lynn Rosenblum is the Associate Professor of Toy Design for Otis College of Art and Design. Professor Rosenblum has over 40 years of experience in consumer products marketing and development. She is a sought-after expert witness and holds an MBA in Marketing from USC.