Mealey's Daubert
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June 23, 2023
Judge: Prosecutor Can’t Testify For Police Officer Charged For False Report
INDIANAPOLIS — A prosecutor retained as an expert witness by a police officer charged with filing a false report cannot testify on the purpose of certain police reports after an Indiana federal judge found his testimony irrelevant and unhelpful under Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc.
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June 22, 2023
Subcontractor, OCIP Broker- Administrator Agree To Dismiss 9th Circuit Appeal
SAN FRANCISCO — The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has ordered the dismissal of a subcontractor’s appeal of the dismissal of its claims against the administrator/broker of an owner controlled insurance plan (OCIP) in a dispute over coverage for property damage at a construction project after the parties stipulated to voluntary dismissal with prejudice.
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June 21, 2023
Judge Nixes Deepwater Horizon Case, Says Causation Expert Fails Daubert Standard
NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge in Louisiana has dismissed with prejudice a case brought by a man who contended that he was injured during cleanup operations following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, ruling that his causation expert failed to meet the standard for admissibility under Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and, therefore, the case lacked expert medical causation evidence.
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June 21, 2023
7th Circuit: FCA Suit Properly Dismissed On Causation Grounds
CHICAGO — The Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals found that a former underwriter who alleged that a mortgage lender made false representations to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development showed proof of materiality but failed to prove causation, affirming summary judgment in the lender’s favor and finding no error in the lower court’s rulings on expert testimony.
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June 21, 2023
Appeals Court: Governmental Immunity In Dispute After Expert Properly Admitted
DETROIT — A Michigan trial court did not err in denying a motion for summary disposition based on governmental immunity after finding that a causation expert’s testimony was admissible, a state appellate panel ruled in affirming.
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June 20, 2023
Delaware Judge: Use Of Stun Gun Expert Allowed In FELA Suit Against Amtrak
WILMINGTON, Del. — A Delaware state judge agreed with a man who sued his former employer for negligence that his expert on the use of stun guns is admissible under Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc. and state law, and denied a motion to exclude.
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June 15, 2023
Judge Dismisses With Prejudice Deepwater Horizon Injury Case For Lack Of Causation
GULFPORT, Miss. — A federal judge in Mississippi dismissed with prejudice an injury lawsuit brought by a man who was involved in the cleanup of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, ruling that he failed to establish causation for his alleged ailments because his experts were inadmissible.
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June 14, 2023
Class Certification Fails After Expert Testimony Excluded In Home Value Case
NEWARK, N.J. — Efforts to certify a class of homeowners who allege that an animal-rendering facility releases noxious odors, which have reduced their enjoyments and the value of their property, fail after a New Jersey federal judge ruled that the homeowners failed to meet the requirements for certification after a finding that the proposed expert testimony is inadmissible.
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June 14, 2023
Excessive Force Expert Out In Case Alleging Police Violated Civil Rights
ORLANDO, Fla. — An expert retained to opine on whether police officers used excessive force during a wellness check cannot testify because his “ultimate opinions run afoul of” Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc., a federal judge in Florida ruled June 13.
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June 14, 2023
Judge Releases Reasoning For Causation Expert Exclusion In Therapy Device Case
TAMPA, Fla. — A Florida federal judge released an order to explain his earlier ruling that an expert retained by a man who alleged that an electro-convulsive therapy (ECT) device caused permanent neurological injury is inadmissible, days after a jury entered a verdict finding that the manufacturer’s inadequate instruction was not a proximate cause of damage.
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June 12, 2023
Expert On Damages Calculation Admitted As Court Mulls Class Certification
LAFAYETTE, La. — An expert’s proposed methodology to calculate damages in a case alleging that an insurer used improper vehicle valuation methods in vehicle damage claims is admissible, a Louisiana federal magistrate judge ruled in denying a motion to exclude.
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June 09, 2023
Judge: Experts On Reasonableness Of Response To Sexual Assault Admissible
CHICAGO — Dueling experts opining on how a college responded to a sexual assault allegation can both testify after an Illinois federal judge denied both motions to exclude but ruled that certain claims filed by a former student do not survive a motion for summary judgment.
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June 08, 2023
Judge: Expert Allowed In Case Alleging Injuries From Exploding Candle
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Testimony from an expert retained from a woman who alleges that she was injured by a defective candle is relevant and reliable, a Tennessee federal judge ruled June 7 in denying Walmart’s motion to exclude the testimony.
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June 07, 2023
Expert Testimony Allowed In Prisoner Suicide Suit, But Some Claims Are Dismissed
ASHLAND, Ky. — A corrections expert can testify in a suit brought by the daughter of a man who committed suicide while in a Kentucky jail, a Kentucky federal judge ruled, but the judge partially granted a motion for summary judgment, dismissing Boyd County, Ky., and various officials from the case.
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June 07, 2023
Expert On Insurance Coverage Suit Admitted, But Judge Rules Certain Claims Fail
GULFPORT, Miss. — A Mississippi federal judge ruled that an expert retained by a woman contesting the amount her home insurer was willing to pay to resolve a claim for storm damage may testify but granted in part the insurer’s motion for summary judgment.
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June 07, 2023
Asbestos Plaintiffs Want To Strike Expert Testimony About Heart Condition
LOS ANGELES — No cardiologist would seriously contend that arterial calcification found incidental to other testing could reduce a man’s lifespan without any knowledge of the condition’s extent, a couple in an asbestos exposure case tell a California judge in seeking to strike the expert’s opinion.
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June 06, 2023
Expert Witnesses Properly Admitted In Robbery Case, 11th Circuit Says
ATLANTA — The 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld the conviction of a man for a spree of robberies, finding that the trial court did not err in admitting expert testimony without holding a hearing under Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc., and rejecting other challenges.
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June 05, 2023
Medical Malpractice Award OK’d By Ga. Appeals Court, Expert Testimony Permissible
ATLANTA — A Georgia appeals court affirmed an $8.5 million verdict in favor of a man suing for medical malpractice related to the death of his wife after finding that the medical professionals “have not met their burden of showing that the trial court abused its broad discretion in admitting” expert testimony.
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May 31, 2023
Jury Selected, 10 Motions In Limine Decided In ERISA Excessive Fees Case
NEW HAVEN, Conn. — A 10-person jury was selected in Connecticut federal court on May 30 for trial in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act class action over claims by participants in a Yale University 403(b) retirement plan related to record-keeping fees, investment monitoring, share classes and a bundled services arrangement with the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of American (TIAA).
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May 31, 2023
Judge: Experts On Zoo Animal Care Admitted In Case Alleging Negligent Care
SEATTLE — A Washington federal judge on May 30 largely denied a motion filed by a roadside zoo to exclude four experts retained by a nonprofit animal rights group, finding that most of the zoo’s objections to their testimony goes to weight and not admissibility.
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May 30, 2023
Expert Cannot Testify On Who Was Driving Personal Watercraft At Time Of Accident
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — An expert retained by the estate of a woman who was killed in a personal watercraft accident cannot testify as to who was driving because his testimony is unreliable under Federal Rule of Evidence 702 and Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc., an Alabama federal judge ruled May 27.
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May 26, 2023
Michigan Panel Remands Medical Malpractice Suit For Testimony Exclusion Error
DETROIT — Michigan evidentiary law requires a trial court to filter out expert testimony that is unreliable, not to determine if the testimony is “unassailable,” a state appeals court held May 25, reversing an award of summary judgment in favor of a hospital and its employees in a medical malpractice suit.
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May 25, 2023
Judge Sets Hearing On Motion To Strike Asbestos Expert
GREAT FALLS, Mont. — A federal judge in Montana set a June 9 hearing on a railway’s motion to strike an expert report stemming from a Libby, Mont., asbestos case. But in a response filed May 2, the plaintiff says that while seemingly boilerplate, the report is the result of expert Barry Castleman’s nearly four decades of experience with asbestos and the railroad industry.
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May 23, 2023
Expert Can Testify, Judge Says, Allowing Breach Of Contract Claim To Proceed
NEWARK, N.J. — While acknowledging that the expert report prepared for a woman suing her home insurer over a denied claim “does not provide the level of rigor and depth that one would expect in federal court,” a New Jersey federal judge found that the testimony passes muster under Federal Rule of Evidence 702 and denied an insurer’s motion for summary judgment.
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May 22, 2023
Federal Judge OK’s Testimony On Safety Policies, Procedures In Slip-And-Fall Case
DENVER — A Colorado federal judge on May 19 denied a motion to preclude an expert retained by a grocery store owner to rebut an expert on safety procedure in a slip-and-fall case, rejecting a man’s claim that the expert’s testimony was irrelevant under Federal Rule of Evidence 702.