The expert witness.

Abstract

The rewards for suits for medical negligence have generated a service industry for plaintiff's lawyers. The provision of "experts" for a contingency fee and the solicitation of plaintiff's attorneys by some physicians to serve as "experts" for large fees may result in highly biased and inaccurate testimony. Ethical expert witness testimony involves knowledge of the commonly accepted principles of treatment at the time of the alleged negligence, recognition of possible multiple accepted avenues of therapy, and testimony that educates the court and jury rather than obfuscates and distorts for personal gain.