Mid-Year Review for Expert Witnesses

This is two-pronged post. First, a gentle reminder about staying on top of your marketing. Now is a good time to check your directory listings and advertising to make sure a) all your contact information is still current and listed correctly and b) that your description/key words accurately describe your practice. It's also a good time to analyze what's providing the best results.

On another front, attorney Robert Ambrogi recently wrote about 2009's Top Five Expert Rulings to date that includes decisions about improper exclusion and the right to confront an expert - decisions that could affect you.

Expert Witnesses and Retirement

Have you planned for retirement? Will you simply close up shop and end your practice? Are you considering selling your expert witness practice? Many experts have contemplated this issue. And it matters, even it seems years away, because your end goals could affect the practice management and marketing decisions you make today and in the years to come.


Here is what one expert emailed me on the subject:

"Question: In a year or two, I would like to retire but I don't know what to do about my clients and practice. I have been an expert witness for about 20 years and have built a good nationwide practice with a number of law firms that use my services over and over along with a constant flow of new clients. My web site has an "employment" section that implies a qualified associate has the potential of acquiring the practice in addition to making a respectable income. The employment section has been on the web site for 6 or 8 months but so far there has not been any interest."

What are your thoughts? I would love to hear your experiences and plans. Please leave your thoughts in the comments or email me at meredith@expertcommunications.com. Also contact me if you would be interested in writing a guest article on this topic or a related one for our newsletter, Expert News.

Help This Expert: Working with a Disability

I recently received a question from an expert about how to continue an expert witness practice when the expert has a disabling health condition. Here's the email I received:

"A colleague of mine is a self-employed expert witness. He works out of a home office in a fairly rural town, and is occasionally called upon to travel to a client's offices or meet with attorneys. Last winter he suffered a stroke, and now finds that he cannot leave his home without assistance, and some of the tasks associated with his work are much more time consuming than before. This has raised some significant challenges as his recovery progresses, and I suspect other expert witnesses have already navigated these decisions.

At what point should one disclose a handicap to potential clients? Should one bill differently for tasks that take longer than before? How can one minimize having to work outside the home? Should all self-employed people carry long-term disability insurance? What accomodations are reasonable for a handicapped person to expect when he must travel to a deposition? There are many other questions surrounding this issue, but thus far I have more questions than answers."

I suspect some of you have faced this issue already and we should probably all consider what we would do. Please give any words of wisdom or resources you know of to help this expert.

Sotomayor and Expert Witnesses

As one who majored in Government and Politics, I follow the Supreme Court rather closely. The change in make-up I see coming in the next four, eight, twelve years, starting with Sotomayor, fascinates me. Attorney Roger Ambrogi's article on Sonia Sotomayor's Top 5 Rulings on Experts provides a look into how her trial court experience affected her appellate opinions and maybe what we can expect if she is confirmed to the Supreme Court.

Going On Vacation?

Vacation season is here. Many of you will be notify callers of your absence through your voice mail message. Jim Calloway's recent post about the message you compose offers sound advice that applies to your "out-of-office" automatic email response as well. It had never occured to me that leaving the beginning date of your leave could be detrimental but his reasoning is sound. Check it out. (Although his advice is written for attorneys, it applies to expert witnesses as well).

Also, a reminder from me to make sure you change your message as soon as you return and turn off your automatic email reply.

Tracking (and Billing) Time

I've been reading numerous articles and posts lately about how much billable time is not billed. Expert consultants that bill by the hour (which should be most, since billing based on outcome is unethical!) are definitely at risk. In our fast-paced world of constant email, phone calls and other interruptions, it is easy to neglect writing down that fifteen minutes working on X before the next interruption. Later, you may not be sure or may think "it wasn't enough to worry about" and so on. But that time adds up and let's face it, your time is money.

I know there are many time-tracking tools, both online and in billing software. Are you using any? What would you recommend to other experts?

Recommending Other Expert Witnesses

We've had an on-going discussion with our newsletter readers about getting payment from insurance companies. Within that discussion, I received the following email with an interesting story pertinent to marketing an expert witness practice:

I provide expert witness services in the insurance and reinsurance industries both in court and in arbitrations. Here is a recent experience. I was called by "Joe", a client for whom I have been retained a few times. He needed an expert in marine cargo insurance. I declined, as this is not an area of my expertise. Joe asked if I knew of anyone who could qualify; I told him I would help if possible. I then called "Jim", a fellow expert/friend, passing along the request from Joe. Jim said he didn't qualify, but he was in turn trying to assist an attorney in locating an expert in a certain type of property insurance, and asked if I knew of anyone with that background. I said "yes-me"; Jim said he would pass it along. I then called "Dick" another expert/friend about the marine cargo. He was qualified and was grateful for the lead. I asked him to call Joe. Right after that, an attorney called, said Jim had recommended me and wanted to discuss the engagement.

Here is the outcome of these events:
-- I got the property insurance engagement from the attorney Jim was trying to help. It was a very lucrative and challenging assignment.
-- The law firm that engaged me is a major player in this arena; now they know me well, and a name partner told me "we'll work together again."
-- After testifying at the arbitration Hearing, I received calls for expert service that I traced back to recommendations from the chairman of the arbitration panel.
-- Dick was retained by Joe for the marine cargo case, and was grateful for my recommendation-this will reinforce our assisting one another in cases that we cannot take ourselves.
-- Joe called thanking me for recommending Dick-this keeps me on Joe's radar screen as well.

All of this happened as a result of me receiving a call for a case that I couldn't take. Instead of stopping at "no thanks", my thought was to help some friends and keep my name in front of them. I view every call as a possible opportunity. When approached on something outside of my expertise, I will tell the attorney "I understand that subject and have some familiarity with it. However, actual job responsibilities with the specific subject have not been sufficient to prevent me from being vulnerable under cross-examination, and I would not do anything that might detract from the merits of your case. Therefore, I must decline." Almost always, they express gratitude for expressing it as a respect for their client and the client's interest. I can then often nudge the conversation to my areas of expertise, get in a brief pitch, and follow up with a CV. Again, it's a way to create a potential opportunity out of a declination.

Sounds like a win-win situation to me. Do you see any potential pitfalls?

Keep Your Practice Busy

If your expert witness practice is suffering in this economy, asking yourself a few questions might spark some new ideas to get more business:

Is there an industry going through a lot of litigation right now that you could target?

Is there an additional service you could provide, such as helping attorneys when conducting depositions of other experts (what questions to ask, etc.), or reviewing files?

Do your current and past clients know all of the services you can provide?

Can prospects easily find out what services you provide and the industries and types of cases you handle?

Could you expand the geographic area in which you currently practice?

Are there issues in the news that you could address either in a press release or by contacting the reporter directly to offer expert commentary?

What steps have you taken in the past to get business that worked? Are you still using those methods?

Thoughtleading for Expert Witnesses

"Become the Go-To Authority" caught my eye, so I placed the book on my Amazon list and finally got around to reading it a few months later. Ken Lizotte's book, The Expert's Edge, is about how to become a "thoughtleader" and authority in your field. Although not all of it is applicable to expert witnesses because of the unique nature of the legal field (not being an advocate, possible contradictions in opinions, etc.), much of his advice is at least thought-provoking.

The book centers around the five pillars of thoughtleading:

Pillar 1: Publishing your ideas
Pillar 2: Speaking before groups
Pillar 3: Keeping your edge with fresh thinking
Pillar 4: Creatively leveraging the Internet
Pillar 5: Making vigorous use of the media

A quick, worthwhile read.

Your Expert Witness Practice & The Unexpected

What happens after the unexpected? I know I harp on preparing for disaster, the future, and the unexpected, but I was recently reminded of another factor in the equation.

The wife of an expert witness who died unexpectedly contacted me last week. She was trying to close his practice in the most responsible way possible - contacting clients, trying to refer them to other experts, returning files to attorneys, etc. It was overwhelming, especially trying to collect unpaid fees and expenses. I helped her as much as I could, but it served as a reminder that we should think about who will handle what we leave behind and how we can make it easier on them.

If you are uncomfortable discussing such things, write some instructions to be available after the "unexpected". Perhaps even try to divide duties among more than one person. Please give it some thought.

Expert Witness Practice a Little Quiet?

If your practice is less busy than you would like right now, make use of the extra time by spiffing up your database of contacts. Enter those business cards you collected at your last association meeting. Scroll through and see if a referral source deserves a thank you. Are there lists of prospects you could buy or compile for your database? As Rosalie Hamilton says in The Expert Witness Marketing Book:

"Communication is the lifeblood of promotion. A well-built, well-maintained database is one of your most valuable businss assets. Possibly you could even sell the information to a younger expert witness in your field when you retire. For now, your database is your field of prospects. The better you create and cultivate that field, the greater will be the crop you harvest. "

Marketing Resolutions

Have you made any marketing resolutions for the New Year? This post from Lyne Noella might spark some ideas for your own practice. She listed her Top 5 New Year's Resolutions, all applicable to expert witness/professional services marketing.

(Hat tip to Michelle Golden for the heads ups on this post)

Expert Witness Resource Round-Up

A few resources to investigate and read while waiting in the airport or escaping from the in-laws over the holidays:

One of our newsletter readers alerted me to a document from the Federal Judicial Center, "Manual for Complex Litigation." Written by and for judges, it contains good information about what is expected at each stage of litigation, who is supposed to attend various conferences, rules of discovery, etc.

Roger Matus of the Death by E-Mail blog, produced a list of 10 Things to Never Put in Email - especially relevant for expert witnesses. Remember, everything you say or write can come back to haunt you or even ruin a case.

Over on the Juris Pro blog, Karen Olson has posted a short list of "Practice Tips on Expert Witness Fees."

IMS ExpertServices identifies the "Top 10 Expert Witness Cases of 2008" in their December newsletter.

The 2009 Annual Conference of the Forensic Expert Witness Association will be held February 26-28 in La Jolla, California. As the online brochure explains, this conference is designed to help experts of all disciplines stay on "the cutting edge as it relates to courtroom presentation and written work product." Presenters include well-known attorneys and experts.

Here's an older article you would have to hunt down (see if you could borrow an issue from an attorney), but in the October issue of TRIAL magazine, hotel expert Peter Tomaras along with attorney Alison Werner Smith published the article, "Closing the Attorney-Expert Gap." The format makes it quite compelling, providing both the expert's perspective and that of the attorney.

Happy Holidays!

Are You Visible On the Internet?

One of the services we provide our expert witness clients is search engine optimization. But if you are working on your website yourself and want some pointers, Google just released its SEO Starters Guide with some surprisingly good explanations about how Google ranks websites and steps you can do to improve your website's visibility.

Lawyer Involvement in Your Expert Report

How much input should your attorney-client have in crafting your expert report? Where is the boundary? Attorney Robert Ambrogi addresses this in a recent newsletter published by IMS Expert Services, "Expert Reports: Should Lawyers Keep Hands Off?" Be sure and read the comments section as well.

While you're at the IMS website, check out Rosalie's article "Marketing Your Expert Practice in a Recession" too.

Perils of the Internet for Expert Witnesses

In the October issue of Florida Trend, the business magazine for our fair state, I read a comment from consultant Amy Singer regarding online research about jurors. Singer states, "We ask them ...whether they have a website....a blog...a MySpace page... Then, if it's public, we can really look at those things...."

Just another reminder that everything you say and do (especially online) can and will be cussed and discussed and used against you. I assure you - if trial consultants are doing this type of research on jurors that attorneys are vetting you the same way prior to engaging your services.

Be aware of everything posted on your own website of course, but also what family members or friends might say about you on their sites. Watch what you say if you comment on others' blogs or networking sites. Once it's out there - it's there for all to see.

Expert Witness Websites - Contact Info?

I hate to bring this up again, but --- please include contact information on your website! I had a friend contact me recently for help in finding an expert witness in a particular area of expertise. I found four and went to their websites. Two (TWO of the four!) had NO contact information whatsoever. One had a "Contact" form with several lines of required information. Only one had a phone number, address, and email listed.

An attorney is not going to take the time to search for how to reach you; he or she is simply going to move to the next expert on the list. Nor will they fill out a "Contact" form.

The point of having a website is to help potential clients find you when they need your services. If they can't then contact you and retain you, why bother?

Expert Witness Expenses

If you frequently travel by car for business purposes, you may want to note that on July 1, 2008 the IRS raised the standard mileage rate used to calculate the deductible costs of driving a vehicle from 50.5 cents to 58.5 cents. They normally only adjust the rate once, at the beginning of the year, but the rising cost of gas made a sixth month change seem more reasonable and fair. You can see more at http://www.irs.gov/

Contracts, Retainers - Getting Paid by Attorneys

We have had many discussions with our newsletter readers about 'getting paid' by their attorney clients. Rosalie addressed this most recently in "Expert Question on Being Retained". One issue she addresses is the signatures on the expert's engagement agreement. I received the following email in response to her advice in that article:

"Your message is right on point. I was recently engaged by a criminal lawyer to help defend a client against a DUI and manslaughter charge. The lawyer sent me a $2,000 retainer and a signed contract, but I carelessly ignored the signature on the contract as it was signed by the mother of the defendant instead of the lawyer.

As a result of my testimony, in a jury trial, I was able to help the defendant get free of the manslaughter charge which could have meant 10 years in jail. However, the lawyer for the defendant still owes me a large amount of money for my expert witness work and that lawyer has ignored payment on my invoices. I will probably end up taking him to small claims court.

In summary, I will carefully review, not only my wording in future retainer contracts, but also the signed signatures, by the other side, on the contract."

This not getting paid is too common a problem for expert witnesses!

What Would You Ask an Attorney?

If you could speak frankly with your attorney clients or prospects, what would you ask them? In the next few weeks I will be interviewing several attorneys about their thoughts, experiences, advice, etc., regarding expert witnesses and consultants. What would you ask? Please leave me your suggestions in the comments (you can post anonymously).