Are you involved in litigation? While you may have a solid case, your lawyer might want you to take a different types of expert witnesses. At first, you might be reluctant, but there are benefits to hiring one. Here are several of them:
What Is An Expert Witness?
These are people who are well-credentialed in their particular field. You can have them brought in to assess anything from a person’s ability to return to work to what their mental state was to whether a building where a person was hurt was built properly. They will have spent years in this field and their word on these particular topics has a lot stronger standing than any layperson.
There are also specialists like forensic toxicologists that deal with anything drug or alcohol-related. They can explain things like how tests can determine if someone had drugs or alcohol in their bodies at the time of something, and even things like carbon monoxide. They can put a definitive spin on a particular case.
They Will Be Impartial
While you might have hired an expert witness with the knowledge that their expertise will likely go your way, you’re still bringing someone who is impartial into the courthouse. If they have a strong reputation as an expert witness, then the opposing counsel may think twice about moving forward with their side of the trial.
This impartiality is very important, since they have a strong code of ethics that they must follow. If either side suspects that an expert witness is partial to the defense or prosecution, then that could be grounds for having their testimony stricken and even possibly a mistrial, since it might have poisoned the jury’s viewpoint.
They Can Bring Insight
Have you ever talked with someone, and they brought up a viewpoint that made you look at things in a whole different way? The expert witness might be just the person to do that for you in the courtroom.
Your case might be of the open-and-close variety, but the expert witness might be able to offer a viewpoint on an area that even you might not have thought of. As a result, they might help solidify an albi or clear you as possibly having a motive for a particular crime.
They Will Bring Experience
When you’re in a courtroom, you’re in a room usually with 12 people who come from all different walks of life. They may not have a single shred of knowledge about the type of case you’re bringing. The expert witness will be able to clear any confusion and make it easier for them to understand what the particulars of the case are all about.
If you can bring in someone who has the exact experience and knowledge, that will make the jury pay attention to what they are saying. If they do follow what is going on, then there is a much better chance that they won’t make an uninformed verdict.
They Can Help Bring the Case to a Settlement
When the opposing counsel sees who is on the expert witness list, they may decide that it’s better to offer a fair settlement than possibly have the witness make the jury think about a larger award.
If you have an experienced lawyer, then they will surely have a large database of expert witnesses in various fields. They may interview them again just to be sure that they will be a perfect fit for your case. This sort of thing has to be done legally, so you will be careful and do it the correct way.
While the court system can be unpredictable at times, having an expert witness can help your case. It also depends on whether the opposing counsel brings in an expert witness of their own. But having one yourself can definitely give you the best chance, and that’s what you need. That alone makes it a great investment.
