A Judge’s Guide

EXPERT HELP
Framing the Questions – What Specialized
Information Do You Need About the Child?
The questions you frame for one case are likely to be different from those that
arise from the facts of another case. If you have a set of standard questions that
you ask in most cases (for example, “Is this adult capable of caring for and
nurturing the child?”), you may wish to attach supplemental questions that go to
the heart of each particular case. Standard questions can be a useful way to keep
track of a variety of concerns, but they also can be so broad as to force the
expert’s recommendation into an “either/or,” “win/lose” roll of the die, for
example “Which parent can provide the best care for this child?” 3
Solve the problem of relevancy from the very beginning by assuring that there is a
tight fit between the best interests issue before the court and the questions you
submit to the expert. Your questions will be a road map – often the expert’s only
contact with the judge, the only clue about how to craft the investigation, develop
interview questions, choose tests, and cast the court report. If the data in the
court reports is not relevant, the fault might be traced right back to the questions
you submitted. It is better to raise a red flag and tell the expert what is really
bothering you. Identify issues of concern or those that lack clarity. For example:
• Does this child’s physical handicap require a special set of parenting
skills?
• Does the father have a problem with alcohol that will interfere with his
care and nurturing of the child?
• Given the mother’s history of mental health problems, is it advisable
to limit the amount of time the child spends with her or place other
conditions on visits?
• Will it harm the youngest child to be separated from her brothers and
sisters, if her primary custody is with her mother and theirs is with
their father?
• Is there a history of domestic violence and, if so, what will enable the
abused parent to feel safe and parent effectively?
The more specific your questions, the more responsive the answers are likely to
be.
Your process for submitting questions to an expert will be influenced by such
factors as: whether yours is a Daubert state that specifies the way a judge examines
expert evidence, 4 the extent to which you invite the lawyers to participate in
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