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Expert Witness on Attorney= s Fees - Direct ExaminationIf you are doing a direct examination of your own attorney fee expert, we recommend that you investigate the deposition question outline form available at Lawyer-Deposition-Forms.com So that you can see why we recommend that form, we provide a sample taken from the direct exam question outline mentioned above. It starts with advice to the attorney, then goes on to set out the major areas to be covered in a deposition of your own expert. We recommend such forms, which include tips to the attorney, because they help you in your testimony preparation with your expert. It gives you a structure for the office conference in which you will discuss with the expert what you want to impart to the jury. Form: Direct Examination of Expert Witness on Reasonable Amount of Attorney's Fees in Dispute.Too many attorneys put the witness on attorney= s fees on the witness stand without carefully considering the evidence that the jury wants to have from that expert. The average attorney simply puts the expert witness on attorney= s fees on the witness stand, asks him/her if he/she is admitted to practice in the state, asks questions regarding the background of the attorney, and then asks what the expert= s opinion is regarding the reasonable value of attorney= s fees in the case. Little attention is paid to all of the things that are asked of other experts. The jury really wants to know from an expert on the subject of attorneys fees the same things that they want to know of all experts. The most important things are probably the following five. The jury wants to know from the expert:
TIP: You could introduce each of the last four of these areas of your questioning by saying: A Now let= s move to the subject of .....@ Beyond the five items noted above, however, there are other items which might be outlined in legal form as a deposition questions outline as follows. This is only a short sketch, but it gives you the idea of what your expert should be asked to express. Ultimate Opinion in Short Form while Jury is Fresh. Mr. Expert, did I ask you to prepare an opinion and give us your opinion what the reasonable fees for Plaintiff/Defendant > s attorneys in this case? Have you prepared such an opinion? What is your opinion? Mr. Expert, did I ask you to prepare an opinion and give us your opinion what the reasonable costs for Plaintiff/Defendant > s attorneys in this case? Have you prepared such an opinion? What is your opinion? Are your opinions that you express today opinions to a reasonable degree of certainty? Expert Qualifications. Before we discuss what you did and the details of your examination of the facts in this case, we would like to know your background and experience in legal fee matters. Have you been admitted to practice law in some state? What legal education have you had? What publications have you written? What professional organizations do you belong to? What is your work experience that bears upon the setting of a reasonable attorney fee in this case? What areas of law or expertise are involved in giving an opinion regarding legal fees in this matter? [Usually, there will be a (1) a field of litigation or transaction law involved; plus (2) Attorney Fees and Expenses and (3) Legal Ethics.] Why does the field of Legal Ethics enter into the determination of a reasonable attorney fee? [The state code of professional responsibility section on the subject may be briefly discussed, in addition to other factors.] What special training and experience have you had with Legal Ethics? What experience have you had in [the litigation or transaction field involved]? What special training and experience have you had regarding Attorney Fees and Expenses? Have you worked as an expert giving opinions for plaintiffs or for defendants? This area of expert qualifications should be gone into in great detail. Use all the professional qualifications that you can from the expert= s resume. If the expert has been admitted to special boards or professional organizations, bring those out. Examination Made in This Case. Now let's move to the subject of what you did to come to your conclusion. First let's talk about what examinations you made in this case and what those examinations showed? When did you first examine this case? What was date of your first examination? What did you do in that examination? What did your examination disclose?
After that first examination what did you do? As a part of your examination, did you use any publications or studies?
Factors Considered plus the Opinion. Now let=s move to the subject of what factors did you consider in coming to your conclusion on reasonable attorneys' Fees? Your opinion is ? How did you calculate that dollar amount, and what is the basis for the opinion?
Now let= s move to the subject of what factors did you consider in coming to your conclusion on reasonable attorneys' Costs? Your opinion is ? How did you calculate that dollar amount, and what is the basis for the opinion? In addition the usual opinion on the amount of Dollars of Fees and the amount of Dollars of Costs, be sure to ask the additional questions of: What is the reasonable attorney fee per hour for each attorney involved in the case? What is the basis of that opinion. What are the reasonable number of attorney hours involved in a reasonable fee for this matter? Are the number of hours that have been asserted by Plaintiff/Defendant= s attorneys as reasonable hours really a reasonable number of hours?
Adverse Expert Opinion. We have heard / will hear testimony from [experts on other side] regarding their opinion on reasonable fees. I would like your opinion, and the basis of that opinion, regarding.. . . . . [The complete form, available at http://www.lawyer-deposition-forms.com/products/ATTORNEY_FEE_AWARD.htm is much longer than this excerpt.]
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