Mealey's Daubert
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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.
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May 18, 2023
Neuropsychologist Qualified As Expert In Criminal Case, Okla. Federal Judge Says
MUSKOGEE, Okla. — An Oklahoma federal judge has adopted the recommendation of a magistrate judge who found a neuropsychologist retained by a man charged with murder to be admissible as an expert, overruling the government’s objection to the report.
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May 17, 2023
Expert Testimony OK’d In Indiana Appeal But Court Finds $4M Verdict Excessive
INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana appeals court found no error in the admission of expert testimony and photographs submitted in support of a woman’s slip-and-fall claims against a store but agreed that the $4 million jury award was excessive and granted a new trial to determine damages.
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May 17, 2023
Insurance Breach Of Contract Claims Survive After Judge Allows Causation Expert
MOBILE, Ala. — A federal judge in Alabama denied an insurer’s motion to exclude an expert retained by homeowners in a policy coverage dispute after finding that his testimony met the requirements of Federal Rule of Evidence 702 and Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc.
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May 17, 2023
Magistrate: Safety Expert Out In Slip-And-Fall Case, Testimony Unhelpful To Jury
DENVER — Walmart successfully argued to a Colorado federal magistrate judge that an expert retained by a woman who alleges that she was injured after slipping on a floor inside of a store is inadmissible under Federal Rule of Evidence 702.
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May 16, 2023
2nd Circuit Finds No Error In Testimony Admission, Affirms Robbery Conviction
NEW YORK — The Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on May 15 denied a man’s appeal of his robbery conviction, finding no error by the trial court in allowing an expert to testify that cell phone tower data placed the man in the vicinity of multiple robberies.
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May 16, 2023
Testimony Based On Medical Records Is ‘Unreliable’ In Crash Suit, Judge Said
ROANOKE, Va. — A federal judge in Virginia agreed that testimony from a neurosurgeon retained by a trucking company sued in relation to a crash involving one of its employees should be limited and excluded testimony based on certain medical records.
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May 16, 2023
Judge: Ballistic Methodology Widely Accepted, Admissible In Racketeering Case
CHICAGO — A federal judge in Illinois denied a joint motion from four men facing racketeering charges to bar testimony from the government’s four experts in the field of ballistics but agreed to place some exclusions on the proposed testimony.
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May 11, 2023
Injured Man’s Experts Can Testify In Suit Against Cruise Company, Judge Says
MIAMI — A Florida federal judge denied two motions filed by Royal Caribbean to exclude experts retained by a man who alleges that he was injured while aboard a cruise ship because the objections to the testimony do not amount to an inadmissibility ruling.
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May 11, 2023
Judge Rules On 3 Motions To Exclude In Suit Against Dog Food Manufacturer
SEATTLE — A Washington federal judge limited the testimony of experts retained by a woman leading a proposed class action against a dog food manufacturer, excluding one expert, limiting another and finding that a third is admissible under Federal Rule of Evidence 702 and Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc.