The faculty will identify the biggest practice management challenges facing the attendees.

The expert's image is crucially important to long term success. In this segment attendees will learn how to fine tune their professional image through case selection and their use of stationery, business cards, CV, logos, and Web pages. Experts will be given advice on best practices and will be provided with examples of what works well. Questions and Answers

Attendees will learn myriad techniques that will help them run an efficient and successful forensic consulting practice. These include optimum new case intake procedures, billings systems, document receipt and retention policies, support staff training and instruction, file maintenance, trial scheduling, procedures for keeping your CV up-to-date, how to account for all time spent on the case, support staff training, responsibilities and boundaries, security and confidentiality protocols and developing and using forms, templates and checklists. Questions and Answers

A frank discussion of how to best deal with retaining and opposing counsel. Included is an explanation of the importance of maintaining boundaries, how to best communicate with retaining counsel, the importance of not giving away your theories or reviewing any confidential information until you have been retained, how to deal with non-responsive or incompetent lawyers, how to deal with failure to prepare you for deposition or trial, being pushed beyond your true area of expertise, how to handle "rush" requests for reports and opinions and how to avoid problems before they materialize. Questions and Answers

Faculty will review the most efficient methods for dealing with requests for preliminary, draft, and other written reports. Best practices for responding to input from counsel, formatting, editing, controls over release of the report, signing, and proofreading will be provided. There will also be an in-depth discussion on the use and misuse of computer templates to assist in report writing. Questions and Answers

Attendees will be provided with an in-depth look at scheduling, billing, postponements, cancellations, errata sheets, and retention/destruction of deposition transcripts. Questions and Answers

Best Practices in Fee Setting, Fee Schedules & Agreements, Billings and Collections

Experts will learn how to correctly value their time and set their fee. They will be taught the importance of not undercharging and how to determine exactly what their time is worth. Model written fee schedules and agreements will be provided along with a checklist of desirable terms in expert fee schedules and agreements. Also included is a detailed discussion of the amount and frequency of retainers, whether retainers should be non-refundable, cancellation fees, expense reimbursement and proven techniques to improve collections of expert witness and consulting fees. Questions and Answers

Attendees will be provided with an insider's view of exactly how attorneys locate and select expert witnesses. Specific advice will be provided on how to make yourself a much more sought after expert witness including how to position yourself in a suitable niche, the skills and reputation that you should develop to make yourself more valuable, how to balance your plaintiff and defense work and what specifically makes you most valuable to retaining counsel. An in depth explanation of numerous cost-effective techniques that can be employed to increase the number of referrals an expert receives is also provided. The benefits and potential drawbacks of each of these techniques will be explained. The techniques covered include: word of mouth, repeat business, referrals from other experts, web pages (including a detailed explanation of what should and should not be on your web site), public speaking, writing, print and online expert witness directories, advertising, direct mail and expert witness referral organizations. Questions and Answers

Experts will learn how to deal with common ethical problems and will learn the potential civil and professional liability of experts. Numerous specific risk management techniques for experts will be explained including avoidance, maintaining the appropriate insurance coverages, due diligence, confidentiality protocols, anti-spoliation procedures, avoiding conflicts and the overriding importance of being 100% honest. Questions and Answers

Concluding remarks will be preceded by an attendee and faculty generated numbered list of action steps and takeaways from the covered material that attendees can use to run a better and more successful expert witness practice. Questions and Answers

Registration 
Info

Expert Report Writing
Workshop

Mail/Orders: PO Box 729, Falmouth, MA 02541
Courier:  316 Gifford St., Falmouth, MA 02540