One of the things I admire about my friends is their amazing ability to carve out a niche for themselves and create a business using their knowledge, skill and sheer determinism.

 Rosalie Hamilton is no exception. She not only created the busines of Expert Witness Marketing, she is the ONLY person who does what she does, and she does it incredibly well. I asked her to share with my readers a bit about what it means to be an Expert Witness and how people get into and earn money from this lucrative pastime. Here, in her entertaining style, are her thoughts: 

Watching actors play the part of an expert witness in police and lawyer shows on television can give an inaccurate or at least an incomplete picture of what that job is like.

First of all, being an expert witness is rarely a full-time job; it is usually done part-time, as an adjunct to full-time work in a profession or trade. Also, even though doctors are seen in a lot of cases, expert witnesses are used from many different occupations. Remember the part played, albeit unwillingly at first, by Marisa Tomei in “My Cousin Vinny?” In addition (not to be confusing, but), an expert witness doesn’t get to “witness” (testify) too often; he or she mostly provides consulting – investigation, research, evaluating, explaining, and communicating both orally and in writing his or her opinion about the facts of a case. This is because the vast majority of cases settle and therefore do not go to court.

Not only in criminal cases but also in civil cases, people from various fields are used to help the players in the legal drama – lawyers, judges, and jury – to better understand the issues in legal cases. The overall term is expert witness, but because he or she does a great deal more consulting than witnessing they are usually just called “experts.” According to the Federal Rules of Evidence, an expert is “a person who through education or experience has developed skill or knowledge in a particular subject, so that he or she may form an opinion that will assist the fact-finder (jury and/or judge).”

Due to the preponderance of cases related to automotive and other accidents and to medical incidents, most experts are engineers, doctors, or accountants and economists (who determine the value of the damages). However, experts used in litigation come from all walks of life. Any incident that can be litigated can conceivably require an expert to inform the court of the codes and standards of a particular industry, profession, trade, etc.

Although most experts are highly educated, experience is also valuable and sometimes substitutes for education as a requirement. For example, although an automotive designer might be used to explain an automobile feature, a mechanic who has replaced brakes for thirty years on numerous types of cars might be used in addition to or in place of the engineer. Another example: A chemist might explain why a hair care solution damaged a person’s hair, scalp, or eyes, but a hair stylist might be called to describe the proper steps that should have been taken in working with that solution.

No overall certification process is required to engage in expert work. However, one should have an acceptable education level for his particular field of work including achievement/certification levels standard in that profession or trade, working experience, a high level of reading comprehension, writing ability, and effective communication skills, including the ability to tell a story.

Work for attorneys and judges supplies extra income, provides intellectual stimulation, and is just downright interesting.

To find out more about the finances, fun, and frustrations in being an expert witness, I recommend reading a book called “The Expert Witness Handbook,” http://tinyurl.com/6emb9v. Then, if the legal battleground looks good to you, get into the arena!

Rosalie Hamilton is the Expert’s Expert on marketing. She is a
consultant, coach, outsourced marketing provider and the author of *The
Expert Witness Marketing Book* http://tinyurl.com/6emb9v)