Category: expert witnesses

Claimant loses in Court of Appeal despite defendant offering no evidence – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted October 8th, 2021 in appeals, compensation, cross-examination, damages, evidence, expert witnesses, holidays, news, personal injuries by tracey

‘The Court of Appeal has found – albeit by a majority verdict – in favour of a defendant who offered no evidence to support their case and did not cross-examine the claimant’s instructed expert. The ruling on uncontroverted evidence in Griffiths v Tui will be a blow for personal injury firms with hundreds of holiday sickness claims waiting on the result.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 7th October 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

No case to answer: prosecution under s. 82 Environmental Protection Act 1990 dismissed – Local Government Lawyer

Posted October 1st, 2021 in environmental protection, expert witnesses, health & safety, housing, landlord & tenant, local government, news, nuisance, private prosecutions by tracey

‘Sarah Salmon reports on how a social landlord successfully defended a private prosecution brought by an occupier of one of its properties under section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 1st October 2021

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Judge lambasts government lawyers who ignored court rules – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted October 1st, 2021 in civil procedure rules, coronavirus, disclosure, expert witnesses, government departments, judicial review, news, public procurement by tracey

‘The Department of Health and Social Care has been publicly censured by the courts for repeatedly failing to comply with civil procedure rules on disclosure protocol in a case brought by a campaign group.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 1st October 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Giving evidence “not a game”, judge tells expert witness – Legal Futures

Posted September 28th, 2021 in accounts, company law, expert witnesses, insolvency, news by sally

‘An expert witness has apologised to the High Court after being told by a judge not to treat giving evidence in court “as a game”.’

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Legal Futures, 28th September 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Public procurement update – Local Government Lawyer

Posted September 17th, 2021 in expert witnesses, judicial review, local government, news, public procurement by tracey

‘Lynsey Oakdene and Kathryn Vickers consider recent decisions on the role of expedited trials in maintaining automatic suspensions and the admissibility of expert evidence; other notable cases; and the government’s newest judicial review reform proposals.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 17th September 2021

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Costs and costs of repairs – Nearly Legal

Posted August 31st, 2021 in damages, expert witnesses, landlord & tenant, local government, news, repairs, small claims by sally

‘An interesting, though non-binding, county court decision on the issue of costs of a disrepair claim that settled pre-allocation.’

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Nearly Legal, 30th August 2021

Source: nearlylegal.co.uk

Expert witnesses “prefer preparing in-person for virtual hearings” – Legal Futures

Posted August 18th, 2021 in coronavirus, cross-examination, expert witnesses, news, remote hearings by sally

‘Expert witnesses prefer to travel to prepare themselves for a trial in person with their legal teams even when the trial itself is to be conducted remotely, a report has found.’

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Legal Futures, 18th August 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Try before you buy: the price of expert shopping – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted August 13th, 2021 in construction industry, expert witnesses, news by tracey

‘When it comes to replenishing my wardrobe, I have little patience for the careful selection of clothes for style and fit (this should come as no surprise). Instead, I am one of those who buys a job-lot of clothes once or twice a year to see me through the next couple of seasons. When I may not have been sufficiently realistic about size, I rely on the ability to change my mind and send things back or exchange for something more appropriate. However, do the same with experts at your peril! The case of Matthew Rogerson (t/a Cottesmore Hotel, Golf and Country Club) v Eco Top Heat & Power Ltd provides a very useful reminder of the court’s approach to expert shopping. As well as a recap on that approach, it invites reflection on how we go about selecting, instructing and managing experts when proceedings are anticipated.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 11th August 2021

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Professional Discipline & Regulatory Team Bulletin – Summer 2021 – 23 Essex Street

Posted August 6th, 2021 in chambers articles, expert witnesses, hospitals, news, professional conduct by sally

‘In this edition of the Professional Discipline & Regulatory Team quarterly bulletin, Carolina Cabral discusses the need for expert evidence where matters are of common sense(pp.2-4) and Divya Puri helpfully reminds us of the process and procedure to be undertaken when applying for a High Court extension to an interim order (pp.5-7) We also include our usual brief summary of some recent cases.’

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23 Essex Street, 2nd August 2021

Source: www.23es.com

Medico-legal market contracts as Covid hits PI cases – Legal Futures

Posted July 8th, 2021 in compensation, coronavirus, damages, expert witnesses, news, personal injuries, statistics by sally

‘The value of the medico-legal market fell by 18% to £650m last year because of Covid reducing the number of new personal injury cases and slowing down those already in progress.’

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Legal Futures, 8th July 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Capacity to make decisions on care and alcohol dependency – Local Government Lawyer

Posted July 2nd, 2021 in alcohol abuse, alcoholism, Court of Protection, expert witnesses, local government, news by tracey

‘Laura Wares analyses a recent case in which the assessment of capacity of an individual with a history of alcohol misuse was considered by the court.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 2nd July 2021

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

36 Crime Criminal Updates – The 36 Group

Posted July 2nd, 2021 in animal cruelty, animals, appeals, chambers articles, criminal justice, evidence, expert witnesses, news by sally

‘We are grateful to the contributors to this Newsletter. Sam Skinner’s case note on the recent decision in R -v- Brecani addresses the consequence of this important shift away from accepting as expert evidence the conclusive decisions made by civil servants within the Home Office on referrals for human trafficking and modern slavery. Kate Kelleher provides a timely reminder that the provisions of the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 is in force from 29th June 2021 and provides a commentary on the most notable recent developments in the prosecutions of animal welfare offences. In April and May Catherine Rose and Tom Parker ran a 2-part webinar session on Open-Source Evidence with contributions from a panel of leading experts from the US and UK. Their article is just a taster of the material covered in greater depth in the sessions. A timely warning to apply the basic critical analysis we use in relation to evidence from many scientific fields to all such evidence before relying on it at face value. Mary Prior Q.C. has provided a comprehensive round up in the Crime Bulletin of all the recent decisions of importance in a broad spectrum of procedural and offence-based areas.’

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The 36 Group, 28th June 2021

Source: 36group.co.uk

Judge’s surprise at firm’s failure to ensure “basic compliance” with CPR – Legal Futures

Posted June 29th, 2021 in civil procedure rules, expert witnesses, law firms, news by sally

‘A High Court judge has expressed her surprise at a London law firm’s failure to ensure “basic levels of compliance” with the Civil Procedure Rules by a client and its experts.’

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Legal Futures, 29th June 2021

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

The role of the surveyor-expert and their evidence in litigation – Falcon Chambers

Posted June 24th, 2021 in chambers articles, evidence, expert witnesses, news, valuation by sally

‘This article considers how the duties imposed on expert witnesses impact upon the functions of expert surveyors giving valuation evidence tendered in Court and in the Upper Tribunal. We will refer to all tribunals as “the Court” by way of shorthand.’

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Falcon Chambers, 8th June 2021

Source: www.falcon-chambers.com

TCC debars Defendant during trial from relying on its three technical expert reports following numerous breaches of CPR Part 35 – Henderson Chambers

Posted June 24th, 2021 in chambers articles, civil procedure rules, evidence, expert witnesses, news by sally

‘The Claimant made an application on day 7 of a TCC trial to debar the Defendant from relying on any of its three technical expert reports and to debar those experts from giving evidence at the trial.’

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Henderson Chambers, 4th June 2021

Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk

Medical agency admin fee “not recoverable” as part of fixed costs – Litigation Futures

Posted June 18th, 2021 in accidents, compensation, costs, damages, expert witnesses, fees, insurance, law firms, news, personal injuries by tracey

‘Defendant solicitors have welcomed a ruling that medical agency costs are irrecoverable under the fixed-costs regime.’

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Litigation Futures, 17th June 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Mason v Laing: Wrongly decided? – No. 5 Chambers

Posted June 17th, 2021 in accidents, disclosure, expert witnesses, news, personal injuries, pre-action conduct, road traffic, small claims by sally

‘Those involved in soft tissue injury cases proceeding under the Pre-Action Protocol for Low Value Personal Injury Claims in Road Traffic Accidents (“the RTA Protocol”) may be familiar with paragraph 7.8B of the Protocol.’

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No. 5 Chambers, 11th June 2021

Source: www.no5.com

Judge throws out expert evidence during trial in excoriating ruling – Litigation Futures

Posted June 3rd, 2021 in civil procedure rules, evidence, expert witnesses, news, pre-action conduct by sally

‘The High Court has excluded three expert witness statements during the trial after ruling that their opinions appeared “directly influenced” by the instructing party.’

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Litigation Futures, 2nd June 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Digital forensics experts prone to bias, study shows – The Guardian

Posted June 1st, 2021 in bias, computer programs, evidence, expert witnesses, news by sally

‘Devices such as phones, laptops and flash drives are becoming increasingly central to police investigations, but the reliability of digital forensics experts’ evidence has been called into question.’

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The Guardian, 31st May 2021

Source: www.theguardian.com

‘Lawyers must do better’: Lord Hodge criticises use of expert witnesses – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted May 28th, 2021 in bias, expert witnesses, judges, news, solicitors, statistics by tracey

‘Instructing solicitors must not jeopardise the impartiality of expert evidence, the deputy president of the Supreme Court said today, citing a study which suggests expert witnesses are being used as “hired guns” by lawyers.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 28th May 2021

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk