Medical Society Statements on Expert Witness Testimony
(Compiled by Patrick Malone & Associates)
Introduction
Our law firm compiled these statements from medical societies on expert witness testimony to acquaint practicing trial lawyers with what the governing bodies of various medical specialties say about how experts should behave when testifying. Trial lawyers may find these statements useful to:
- Prepare your own expert witness to testify.
- Cross-examine adverse experts who appear to violate any of the provisions of these guidelines.
- Prepare motions to limit or strike expert testimony.
We make no endorsement for or against any of these statements from medical societies. Some of them are written in ostensibly even-handed language but have been used to intimidate honest expert witnesses who have given testimony adverse to a member of a particular professional society. Whatever the motive behind any set of guidelines, they all deserve careful scrutiny by any lawyer examining or cross-examining a medical expert witness at trial.
For a discussion of some of the issues and case law about medical society “peer review” programs concerning expert testimony, see generally: B. Sonny Bal, “The Expert Witness in Medical Malpractice Litigation,” Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, February 2009.
List of Medical Societies with Published Statements on Expert Witnesses, and Hyperlinks
- American Academy of Dermatology
- American Academy of Family Physicians
- American Academy of Neurology
- American Academy of Ophthalmology
- American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons
- American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
- American Academy of Pediatrics
- American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law
- American Association of Neurological Surgeons
- American Association of Thoracic Surgery
- American Board of Independent Medical Examiners
- American Board of Plastic Surgery
- American College of Cardiology
- American College of Chest Physicians
- American College of Emergency Physicians
- American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons
- American College of Legal Medicine
- American College of Medical Toxicology
- American College of Nurse-Midwives
- American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
- American College of Pathology
- American College of Physicians (1 of 2)
- American College of Physicians (2 of 2)
- American College of Radiology
- American College of Surgeons
- American Congress of Obstetricians & Gynecologists
- American Heart Association
- American Medical Association (1 of 2)
- American Medical Association (2 of 2)
- American Society of Anesthesiologists
- American Society of General Surgeons
- American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery
- American Urological Association
- International Association of Rehabilitation Professionals
- Society of Interventional Radiology
- Society of Thoracic Surgeons
- World Federation of Neurological Societies