Expert Witnesses in Baltimore Car Accident Cases
In Maryland law, an expert is a person who has an expertise in a particular field. Usually, in car accident cases, it has to do with medical treatment and the injured party needs a doctor to testify to a reasonable degree of medical probability that the injuries the person sustained were caused by the crash they were involved in.
If for some reason the roadway or the design of the roadway was defective and that was the reason why the accident happened, the person would want a transportation and/or traffic engineer as an expert. An expert is just a person who has a special training in a particular field. If an individual wants to know more about expert witnesses in car accident cases, they should speak with a skilled car accident lawyer that could answer their questions.
Requirements for Expert Witnesses
In order for someone to become an expert witness, they must have a degree and/or significant amount of experience in their field and that is how they are designated an expert witness. Someone who has special training and experience in a particular field can be asked to be an expert witness and the court can qualify them so long as their education and their experience mean that they know more about a certain field than the layperson does.
Types of Expert Witnesses
Depending on the type of case, an expert witness could be anyone including a:
- Medical doctor
- Orthopedic surgeon
- Neurologist
- Psychologist
- Psychiatrist
- Accident reconstructionist
- Traffic or transportation engineer
Typically, it is just the treating medical doctors and medical providers that are called on to be expert witnesses in Baltimore car accident cases. Expert witnesses just need to be able to use their expertise to shore up the accident victim’s defense.
Are Existing Relationships With Expert Witnesses Allowed?
Expert witnesses in Baltimore car accident cases are allowed to have existing relationships with the car accident victims. Usually, attorneys call the treating physician, the doctor who treated the injured party for their injuries. An attorney might use a medical doctor in order to prove elements of negligence, namely damages and causation.
Benefits and Issues With Using Expert Witnesses
The benefits of using expert witnesses in Baltimore car accident cases are that it aids in proving the person’s case. It proves that the injuries they sustained as a result of the crash are causally related to the crash and the person should be compensated for that.
Oftentimes, doctors want anywhere between $5,000 and $10,000 to testify on a person’s behalf and so that is when a person can try to get their medical records and bills into evidence by way of stipulation or by way of evidence rules. But putting in a person’s medical records and bills without the testimony of a doctor limits a person’s recovery to $30,000.
How a Baltimore Car Accident Attorney Could Help
If you have been injured in a car accident, it is important to work with a capable car accident attorney. An experienced car crash lawyer could help you determine whether an expert witness could be beneficial in your case. A well-connected attorney could use their connections to find a reliable expert witness that could bolster your car accident claim. If you want to know more about expert witnesses in Baltimore car accident cases, work with a knowledgeable lawyer that could fight for you.
