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y judy scinyamagness EXPERT witness use on The Rise After the storms of the recent recession, the forecast is bright for firms providing expert witness services to the legal profession. According to the “Expert Witness Consulting Services Market Research Report,” a rise in court cases requiring expert testimony is expected over the next five years. “The industry is set to benefit from an increase in per capita disposable income, government consumption and investment, corporate profit and strengthened demand from law firms,” stated the IBISWorld report released in July. THE SUIT MAGAZINE - NOV 2014
Peter George, managing partner of Healthcare Litigation Support, LLC, based in Massachusetts, agrees that the recovering economy has led to an increase in the demand for expert witnesses. He also said that expert referral firms need to keep pace with new technologies in many industries. “The litigation environment has changed considerably over the past decade due to technological advancements,” said George. “For example, we rarely had a DNA-related issue 10 years ago; now we have frequent requests for experts in DNA identification and genetics.” From solo law practices to the nation’s largest legal firms, Healthcare Litigation Support works with both plaintiff and defense attorneys throughout the United States and in six countries with roots in the English legal system, including Singapore, Caribbean island nations, Canada and the United Kingdom. The firm provides physicians, dentists, nurses, pharmacists and other healthcare-related experts to serve as consultants and witnesses. Experts are in demand for a wide range of cases involving individuals with special needs – from litigation concerning workplace accommodation for people with disabilities to abuse cases at group homes or in institutional settings. “We also have cases at alcohol and drug rehabilitation facilities involving issues of restraint, supervision, or other alleged negligence on the part of the facility’s staff resulting in injury or even death,” George said. Healthcare Litigation Support provides psychiatric experts to address child custody issues in divorce cases. Autism experts are also increasingly in demand. The nature of medical malpractice issues has not changed too drastically through the years. “As always, the plaintiff in a malpractice case alleges that the doctor breached the standard of care by doing something negligent, or by failing to do something that should have been done,” said George. One thing that has changed, however, is the enactment of state laws that make medical malpractice cases more difficult for plaintiffs to pursue and to win. These include requirements that an expert’s Are you spending your valuable time looking for the right healthcare expert? www.healthcarelitigation.com affidavit of merit be submitted with the complaint and caps on damages for pain and suffering, George explained. “Our role is not that of an advocate for a particular party in a case, but that of an agent who provides highly qualified experts to assist attorneys in evaluating cases and, when needed, to serve as expert witnesses,” said George, adding that each of the firm’s case managers has a particular area of expertise. The firm does not provide experts to pro se litigants – including attorneys who want to litigate their own cases. In additional to healthcare experts, Healthcare Litigation Support provides non-medical experts such as biomechanical engineers, vocational rehabilitation consultants, construction safety experts, forensic accountants, and other types of experts needed for personal injury cases. George announced that Healthcare Litigation Support is in the midst of a re-branding program in connection with its plans for expansion. The firm’s identity is transitioning from Healthcare Litigation Support to HLS Experts – including a new domain name and website – which will address markets beyond healthcare. The goal is to grow the firm by 50 percent over the next two years, without an acquisition, by expanding into additional areas of the law including information technology, property law, water rights, and oil and gas. George not only has a professional interest in medical experts, but a personal one as well. He serves on the board of directors of the Greater Athol Area Association of Families with Special Needs, an organization providing services for families in the region who have a family member with a disability. George’s 26-year-old son is developmentally delayed, both cognitively and physically, and is dependent on George and his wife for his daily care. “He is functional and independent in a very limited context,” explained George. After George had spent 15 years as a healthcare consultant, which required extensive travel, one day in 2003 his wife told him that things had to change, because she needed help caring for their son. It was then that George entered the field of expert witness services, and in fact, it was his son’s needs, along with his own personal empathy, that gave him the passion and the drive to start his own firm. THE SUIT MAGAZINE p.65
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Issue 63 NOV 2014 Top Billing Docs
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publishers note ISSUE 63 | NOV 2014
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BUSINESS / FINANCE 34 Technology Se
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Page 26 and 27: y amy m. armstrong Intensive Specia
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Page 38 and 39: y enid burns HELPING SMALL LENDERS
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Page 50 and 51: y rodric j. bradford Commitment to
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