Becoming an expert at vetting experts: researching expert witnesses

Welcome to the October 2017 edition of our newsletter!  In this issue, we’ll examine concerns that can arise when an expert’s history isn’t all that it seems, and how to prevent such situations, especially when preparing for trial.

Getting to Know the People with Knowledge

Expertise is an essential part of most transactions – making sure the accountant auditing your company’s books knows what he’s doing, or that the architect designing your new factory has all of the certifications and education to do her job well.  Yet the time when most people think of someone’s credentials is when they don’t check out, such as when someone lies about a license, a degree, military service or some other item meant to set them apart.

In a pre-transaction setting, verifying such credentials is essential to maintaining trust and confidence as the deal comes to a close.  An unprofessional consultant advising your company will reflect poorly to the party across the table.  Similarly, when hiring experts for litigation – whether using forensics in criminal settings, for example, or for internal harassment investigations – confidence in their claimed background will add confidence to their promised results.  If such experts are found by opposing parties, or enterprising media members, to not be all that they claim, the damage can be profound.

Putting the Pieces Together: Tips for Verifying Credentials

There are certain difficulties that typically arise when verifying credentials, but most can be overcome with tenacity and patience.  While verifying educational degrees can be as easy as calling a school’s registrar, and most state or county licenses can be checked via the relevant databases, other claims in a curriculum vitae can take some more digging to flesh out.  Did the expert really co-author an article? Did they perform military service or the dates claimed and achieve the rank they claimed?  In some instances, databases can help with these queries too, although verifying government service typically requires a written request to the appropriate agency, which can take a few weeks and is often redacted somewhat when results are received.

Perhaps more difficult to verify are the trade association memberships discussed by an expert, as record-keeping at these groups can be somewhat questionable, given that many purged older records when they upgraded to computerized systems.  In each instance, however, an essential component to vetting an expert’s history is asking about any disciplinary actions or complaints filed against that person’s membership or license – in addition to verifying what the expert told you, it’s of even greater importance to identify any acts they may have wanted to leave out.

By taking the time and effort to carefully re-assemble an expert’s history, to make sure it is at it appears you can give clients confidence that the person they’re dealing with is credible, and make them aware of any issues that could call that credibility into question.