What are factors you look for in choosing expert witnesses in providing defenses in your cases?

We always retain the best experts for our cases. But how do we know we have the “best” as part of our team? Of course, we fully vet the consultant’s credentials (education, training, experience), but just because someone looks good on paper doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re the best person for a particular case.  We look for someone with specific expertise to fit the case – there’s no such thing as one size fits all. For example, if we are defending an architect against a claim for the negligent design of a medical lab, we hire an architect who has designed this particular type of project before, not a “jack of all trades.” Similarly, for a spinal injury, we would retain a spinal specialist, not a general orthopedic surgeon who treats knees and elbows.

Understanding you practice in one of the top judicial hellholes, how do you work up a case for trial to avoid a runaway verdict?

From a case’s inception, we develop evidence and strategies to implement Tyson & Mendes’ proven Nuclear Verdict® defense methods: accept responsibility, personalize the corporate defendant, give a number, and argue pain and suffering. We have found these four strategies, when used together, are extremely effective at defusing juror anger and combatting sneaky plaintiffs’ tactics.

When do you recommend coming up with a defense number?

Our goal is to come up with a defense number as early as practicably possible and as the evidence develops during the discovery, the number may change. In terms of trial, we give a number early (as soon as jury selection) and often throughout the remainder of the trial.

Keep Reading

When Roads Diverge in the Wood: the Power of Risk in Building a Fulfilling Career and Stopping Nuclear Verdicts® “Building” a Better Plan for Design Professional Expert Witnesses: Theater Patrons Trapped in Elevators After Architect’s Failure Actions With Far-Reaching Consequences: Brody v. Hoch,  Non-Resident Jurisdiction, and the “Long Arm” of the Law A First-Generation Lawyer’s Inspiration to Practice Lights, Camera… Courtroom? Why Hollywood Stereotypes About Court Are Not All They Are Cracked Up To Be! The Backbone of the Courtroom Colorado’s Statute of Limitations: No Exceptions for Delayed Grief From Pro Bono to Insurance Defense: A California Lawyer’s Path ‘McDonald’s Hot Coffee Case’ 30 Years Later: Revisiting the Original Nuclear Verdict®