FMA Workshop Session:

The Engineer as Testifying Expert

Part 1: What is an Expert Witness?

Part 2: The Litigation Process

Part 3: Testimony Tips and Tricks

Part 4: The Litigation Support Business

www.hydrologyexpert.com

A copy of this presentation can be downloaded at:

www.hydrologyexpert.com/FMA2019.pdf

1. Your Qualifications

2. Your CV (Curriculum Vitae)

3. Your Web Site

4. Rates and Fees

5. Marketing and Advertising

6. Training in Expert Witness Skills

Topics to be Addressed*

Qualifications

• The court (judge) will qualify you as an expert

prior to your testimony at trial.

• The law says that you can be qualified based on your:

1. Education

2. Training

3. Experience

• All three can be important, but any one of the three is

sufficient.

What’s Your Field of Expertise?• General Civil Engineer –

• lots of cases, but also a lot of experts out there

• tend to get more local casework

• generally charge rates at the lower end of the range for all

engineers (given the same level of experience)

• Water Resources Engineer –

• less cause for litigation, but fewer experts in the field

• greater chance of getting casework out of your locale

• can generally charge higher rates than general civils

• Reservoir Operations Expert

• Even more specialized, as per above

Develop a “niche” expertise

What Skills/Experience Do You

Have?

1. Education & Training – first consideration; more is

always better

2. Experience – years of experience runs a close second

in consideration

3. Prior experience in litigation support –

important in consideration for higher stakes cases; also

a good basis for raising your rates

4. Speaking experience – helps in depositions, essential

in court

5. Writing skills – sorry, but (scrutinized) reports are part

of being an expert

Your Curriculum Vitae (CV)• Your Expert Witness CV is your resume for

the purpose of acting as an expert witness

• It is not generally the same as your

professional resume

• Best if kept to 1 or 2 pages

• The CV is formatted like a resume, e.g.:

– Name and Contact Info

– Summary of work experience, forensic

engagements and testimony provided

(general descriptive paragraph, or two).

– Employment History (reverse chronological)

– Education and Degrees

– Publications & Research

– Professional Associations

• Case Listings and Project Listings can be

provided as separate documents, instead of

appendices to the CV, if possible

Your Curriculum Vitae (CV)

Good CV Qualities:

1. Focused – the CV is for Litigation Support, not Project

Management

2. Brevity - a CV should generally be 3 pages, at most. One page

is ideal, if you can. Lists can always be provided separately.

3. Professional - provide material related to professional

experience only, i.e., no hobbies, clubs, etc.

Your Curriculum Vitae (CV)

Essential CV Qualities:

1. Up to date – constantly maintain it

2. Accurate –attorneys will fact check it

3. Honest – absolutely no exaggerations

4. Defensible – opposing attorneys will question it

Make sure that all opinions you state in your current case

are completely consistent with any publications or trial

testimony cited in your CV!

Your Web Site: Your Liability

• Maintain separate web pages, or a separate web site, for your

Expert Witness capabilities

• You are ultimately responsible for everything on your web site

• Know your content, esp. if someone else prepares it

• Don’t exaggerate or “fluff-up” anything in your credentials, job

experience, fields of expertise or capabilities

• Avoid inflammatory descriptors, e.g., best, superior, world

class, foremost, supreme, etc.

• All previously described CV qualities also apply to your web

site and its content

Your Web Site: Your Liability

The Most Common Mistakes Made by Experts

Regarding Their Web Sites

1. Not regularly updating the CV on their website

2. Not frequently reviewing the copy on their website

3. Having too much information on their site

4. Having a website that is not optimized for search

engines (SEO)

5. Having a website that does not print out properly

Rates and Fees

Questions Frequently Asked by Experts on Fees:

• Am I charging enough?

• Should I raise my expert witness rates?

• What is likely to happen if I raise my expert witness rates?

• How much should I charge for an expert witness retainer?

• Should my litigation support retainer be refundable or non-refundable?

• Should I charge a cancellation fee for late notice cancellation of depositions and trial

testimony?

• Should I get my money up-front for depositions and trial? Will attorneys agree to

this?

• Should I require counsel to sign a written retention contract? Will attorneys agree to

this?

The answers to these questions are…..

Rates and Fees

Why? Because:

1) Expert Witness rates

keep changing

2) The answers are

different from expert to

expert, and from region

to region

Here are two Fee &

Practice Survey Reports

conducted by

ExpertPages.com:

… Best answered by obtaining an Expert Witness Fee Survey!

Marketing and Advertising

Advertising

• Experts cannot “advertise.” Lawyers can and do.

• Placement Ads on Web, or in Directories is OK, but:

– Don’t make any promises or claims inferring case outcomes

– Don’t use superlatives, and watch your descriptors (like with your

web site)

– Don’t send advertising materials out via direct mail or email;

that’s solicitation

Marketing and Advertising

Attorney Ads

Marketing and Advertising

Expert Ads

Marketing and AdvertisingMarketing the Expert Witness Practice

• Print up business cards - list “Litigation Support” as a service

• Your web site – add a Litigation Support Services page

– Learn SEO, or hire someone to do it for you

– Google AdWords (hire a pro, or pay a lot)

Expert Witness Directory Listings

Printed directories (becoming passé)

• SEAK, Inc. (www.seak.com)

• ALM Experts (American Lawyer Media);

www.almexperts.com)

• FEWA (Forensic Expert Witness Association;

www.forensic.org)

• National Directory of Expert Witnesses

(www.national-experts.com)

Bar Association Directories• Online and Print Directories and Advertising

• Members use Print Directories more as a “Lawyer

Phone Book”

Internet directories

• www.JurisPro.com

• www.ExpertPages.com

• www.Experts.com

• www.HGexperts.com

Expert Witness Association

Directories• Online and Print Directories and Advertising

Marketing and AdvertisingMarketing the Expert Witness Practice

• Social Media Listings, esp. LinkedIn

– Join Specialty Groups on Social Media (both LinkedIn and Facebook have

Expert Witness Groups)

• Expert Witness Networks, Associations

– FEWA (Forensic Expert Witness Association) – www.forensic.org

• Speaker Meetings, Directories, Online Resources, Webinars, Conferences and

Workshops

• Chapters in: Dallas, Houston, Florida, Los Angeles, Northern California, Orange

County, San Diego, Arizona, Chicago

– SEAK, Inc. – www.seak.com

• Workshops, Conferences, Directories, Online Resources, Books and Publications

– NAFE (National Academy of Forensic Engineers) – www.nafe.org

• Online Resources, Conferences, Workshops, Publications, Directories

Marketing and Advertising

Marketing the Expert Witness Practice

• Referral Services

– Fee Based - attorneys pay the service, who marks up your rates and does the billing

• Forensis Group

• TASA (Technical Advisory Service for Attorneys)

• GLG (Gerson Lehrman Group)

– Non-fee based – ask to get listed with them; it’s free, but may require references

• DRI (Defense Research Institute)

• ATLA (Association of Trial Lawyers of America)

• Speaking Opportunities

– CLE Class presentations

– ASCE/Engineering Association speaking opportunities

• Word of Mouth Referrals

– Professional meetings – pass out business cards

– Current Clients – mention your litigation support services

FMA Workshop Session:

The Engineer as Testifying Expert

Part 1: What is an Expert Witness?

Part 2: The Litigation Process

Part 3: Testimony Tips and Tricks

Part 4: The Litigation Support Business

www.hydrologyexpert.com

A copy of this presentation can be downloaded at:

www.hydrologyexpert.com/FMA2019.pdf

Rick Van Bruggen, PE, CFM, D.WRE

Water Resources Consulting Services, Inc.

Palm Desert, California

www.hydrologyexpert.com

A copy of this presentation can be downloaded at:

www.hydrologyexpert.com/FMA2019.pdf

FMA Workshop Session:

The Engineer as Testifying Expert