What Types of Expert Witnesses Might Be Useful in My Personal Injury Lawsuit?
Hiring an attorney to handle your claim for money damages after you’re hurt in an accident can provide you with many advantages. For example, should your case progress toward trial, a skilled personal injury attorney will know how to use testimony from experts to bolster your case.
Unlike eyewitness testimony, expert witnesses are individuals who were not present when the accident happened, but who are versed in a specialized field of knowledge and who can offer an opinion based on their examination of the evidence, or an explanation of why the evidence requires a particular finding. If you’ve never been part of a personal injury lawsuit before, you may wonder why you need an expert to testify on your behalf and what sort of evidence each type of expert can provide. Below is a rundown on the types of experts who are most likely to make an appearance in a personal injury trial, and how they can help you strengthen a claim for damages after you’re hurt in an accident.
Accident Reconstruction
If you were hurt in a truck, car, boat, or train accident, testimony from an accident reconstruction expert will offer the judge or jury an explanation based on physical evidence of why the crash occurred as you claim, and why it caused the property damage that it did. Accident reconstruction experts use physical evidence, photographs of the accident scene, and testimonial evidence to determine facts like how fast each party was going before the accident, whether or not roadway conditions or visibility played a part in an accident, or even if driver distraction or intoxication was a factor.
Medical and rehabilitative experts
Sometimes a defendant will attempt to argue that your injuries existed prior to an accident or that your injuries won’t actually result in the long-term costs you’ve projected. A medical expert can provide a technical analysis of your physical condition before and after the accident and explain to a court why your injuries resulted from the accident. A rehabilitation expert will be able to provide an opinion on the length of time you can expect to spend getting back to full health, based on their experience with dozens or hundreds of previous rehabilitation clients.
For assistance with your personal injury claim in New York, contact the dedicated and trial-ready Hudson Valley lawyers at Rusk, Wadlin, Heppner & Martuscello for a free evaluation of your case, at their offices conveniently located in Marlboro (845-236-4411) or Kingston (at 845-331-4100).
