Expert Witness News – page 17 | Your Expert Witness

Caroline’s dual qualification gives her the edge in personal injury litigation

Caroline Kerr, a senior solicitor at law firm Hart Brown, has qualified for the Law Society’s Personal Injury Accreditation Scheme.

Caroline joined the personal injury team at Hart Brown in 2008. She originally qualified and worked as a doctor (specialising in anaesthetics), before retraining as a solicitor, and has a Master’s degree in Medical Law and Ethics. She now has extensive experience of a broad range of personal injury and clinical negligence claims.

The head of the personal injury department at Hart Brown, Paul Grimwood, commented: “We are delighted that Caroline’s expertise, experience and dedication to her clients have been recognised in this way. She is a valued member of our specialist personal injury and clinical negligence team.

Scope of expert’s assessment can be limited by court

The following story about when the court can decide the limit of an expert witness’s assessment of likely value of damages was featured on the website of Goodman Legal in December.

The case concerned the estate of an elderly woman. When she died her daughter – who was her personal representative – realised that some of her late mother’s land was occupied unlawfully by three people. She brought an action against them, seeking to recover possession of the land and claiming damages for ‘use and possession’ of it.

A tough year in store for experts – and solicitors

Law Society directory with expert witness article A number of new pressures on expert witnesses will combine to make this year a seminal one for experts in all disciplines, according to an article in the Law Society Gazette's Legal Services Directory. The initiatives are the cap on fees, introduced in October (with the setting of London levels lower than those outside London), the removal of immunity from prosecution, proposals for pre-trial assessment of witness evidence and the introduction of 'hot-tubbing' of witnesses already being trialled in the Family Court and Chancery Courts. The eventual introduction of Jackson LJ's proposals on civil costs will add to the squeeze.

Expert witness consortium seeks feedback

The Consortium of Expert Witnesses to the Family Courts has appealed to solicitors for feedback on the effect of fee cuts, according to a report in the Law Society Gazette in January. According to the Gazette: “The group believes there are already difficulties in obtaining access to qualified experts and has objected to lower rates of pay in London compared with the rest of the country.”

IMO Secretary-General urges rapid and full casualty investigation following Costa Concordia incident

100 years after titanic IMO Secretary-General Koji Sekimizu has expressed his condolences and sympathy for all those caught up in tragic accidents involving ships over the weekend.

Speaking at the opening of the IMO Sub-Committee on Stability, Load Lines and Fishing Vessel Safety today (16 January 2011) Mr Sekimizu said, “I wish to express my sincere condolences and sympathy on behalf of IMO to the families of those who have lost their lives the cruise ship Costa Concordia.”