Who is Considered an Expert Witness in Denton?
In Texas, an expert witness is defined as someone who can aid the jury with special knowledge in an area that the general populace does not have expertise in. This definition is very broad and can encompass individuals with expertise in science, healthcare, or reconstruction, for instance.
The most common experts in Denton car wreck cases are accident reconstructionists. These are people who take pictures of the accident scene, look at where the gouge marks are, and run the numbers to try to figure out exactly what happened in the collision. These experts can sometimes accurately determine the speeds of the vehicles and the point of impact. Other expert witness commonly retained in car crash cases include:
- Police officers
- Doctors
- Vocational rehabilitation experts
- Economists
- Mechanics
In especially catastrophic car wreck cases, an attorney may bring in life care planners. A life care planner is typically a doctor or nurse whose specialty is figuring out what the claimant is going to need medically in their life now and in the future. For instance, if a collision resulted in a claimant being paralyzed, a life care planner could attest to the need for a wheelchair, modifications to the person’s home, or perhaps the need for in-home care.
Is an Expert Witness Allowed to Have an Existing Relationship with the Claimant?
An expert witness is allowed to have an existing relationship with a claimant, defendant, or judge, because none of that matters. What matters are the expert’s qualifications and the expert’s experience to testify.