How to Write a Medical Malpractice Expert Witness Report
Your medical malpractice expert witness report should be targeted to your attorney's specifications. Before you begin to prepare your report, know what he or she is expecting in terms or length, formatting, font, and amount of details to include. To ensure that you meet your attorney's guidelines and ensure you are paid on time, give your attorney a draft of the report to review before you put it in final form.
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Instructions
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Ask the attorney you are working for to help you define the scope of your report. Most jurisdictions have written rules that define what you may include in your medical malpractice expert witness report. Before you begin to work on the report, get a written set of guidelines.
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Understand the purpose of your report. To write an effective report, make sure you have a clear understand of what the attorney hopes to accomplish with your report and make you are prepared to discuss all of the issues relevant to the case.
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Describe the education and experience that makes you qualified to be an expert witness in the case. You will need to begin your report by discussing what degrees you hold, how long you have been working in the medical field, and for how many cases you have served as an expert witness.
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Provide a description of your knowledge of the case. Discuss whether you obtained your information on the case through third-party documentation or whether you interviewed the doctors or patient in person.
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Give an objective medical assessment of the situation. To ensure that your report is valuable, discuss the medical issues accurately and in-depth, but avoid using medical jargon or overly-technical language that the attorneys and other parties to the case may not understand.
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Explain how the medical evidence backs up your opinion using specific information about the case. Make sure that you have concrete medical facts to back up conclusions you make about the legal ramifications of the malpractice action.
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Disclose your fees. In some jurisdictions, you may be asked to disclose pay or other compensation you received in exchange for your report.
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Sign and date the report. You will need to sign your name and certify that all of the information listed in your medical malpractice expert witness report is accurate to the best of your knowledge. You may be required to execute your signature in the presence of a notary public.
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References
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