Babitsky, S., Mangraviti, J.. and Babitsky, A. (2006). The A-Z guide to expert witnessing. Falmouth, MA: SEAK Inc. ISBN:

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1 REHB 672 Law and the Forensic Rehabilitation Consultant Instructor: Credits: 3 Office: Online Class hours: Phone: Online Office hours: Text and materials: Supplemental materials: Babitsky, S., Mangraviti, J.. and Babitsky, A. (2006). The A-Z guide to expert witnessing. Falmouth, MA: SEAK Inc. ISBN: Barsky, A., & Gould, J. (2004). Clinicians in court: a guide to subpeonas, depositions, testifying, and everything else you need to know. The Guilford Press. ISBN: Barton, E., Bernstein, T., & Hartsell, T. (2005). The portable guide to testifying in court for the mental health professionals: an a-z guide to being an effective witness. New York: Wiley. ISBN: Bohr, S., & Harrington, C. (2006 update). Bohr s social security issues annotated. (2 vols.) Santa Ana, CA: James Publishing, Inc. ISBN: Bohr, S. (2006 Update). Social security advocates handbook. Santa Ana, CA: James Publishing, Inc. ISBN: Bronstein, D. (2002). Law and the Expert Witness. (2 nd Ed.). ISBN: Buckles, T. (2001). Laws of evidence. The West Legal Studies Series). St. Paul, MN: Thomson Delmar Learning. ISBN: Bush, T. (2006 Update). Social security disability practice. Santa Ana, CA: James Publishing, Inc. ISBN: Field, T., Johnson, C., Neulicht, A., & Blackwell, T. (2005). The vocational expert: revised and updated. Athens, GA: Elliott & Fitzpatrick. ISBN: Field, T., & Johnson, C. (2006). The daubert challenge: from case referral to trial. Athens, GA: Elliott & Fitzpatrick. ISBN: Field, T., Johnson, C., Schmidt, R., & Van de Bittner, E. (2006). Methods and protocols: meeting the criteria of general acceptance and peer review under daubert and kumho. Athens, GA: Elliott & Fitzpatrick. ISBN: x.

2 REHB 672 Law and the Forensic Rehabilitation Consultant 2 Havranek, J., Blackwell, T., Dillman, E., Field, T., Grimes, & Weed, R. (1997). Forensic rehabilitation: a resource for vocational experts. Athens, GA: Elliott & Fitzpatrick. ISBN: Klawans, H. (1991). Trials of an expert witness: tales of clinical neurology and the law. (1 st Ed.). NY: Little Brown & Co. ISBN: Newman, L., & Klieman, R. (2006). Take the witness: the experts speak on crossexamination. JurisNet, LLC. Tsushima, W., & Anderson, R. (1996). Mastering expert testimony: a courtroom handbook for mental health professionals. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associations. ISBN: (electronic book) State and Federal Statutes that apply to specific cases cited or general areas of litigation in which forensic rehabilitation experts practice State and Federal Rules of Evidence (representative states in which students are located or within which they practice) State and Federal Rulings on Hearsay Course Description: Detailed orientation to legal procedures, precedents, and venues. Qualifications of forensic experts under Daubert and Kumho. Ethical practices; admissibility of evidence; federal and state rules of evidence; discovery procedures; hearsay evidence, deposition and testimony at trial; direct and cross-examination. Student Learning Outcomes: 1. Demonstrate knowledge of the various areas of litigation in which a rehabilitation professional s expertise may be utilized to assist the courts in determining the impact of disability upon an individual and/or their surviving family members. 2. Demonstrate an understanding of the differences between litigation that falls within state or federal venues. 3. Demonstrate understanding of court procedures, rules governing the court, roles of the various parties involved within a deposition or court trial, specific terminology relating to challenges or procedures of the court, standards applicable to the rehabilitation practitioner as a fact witness, testifying expert witness, or a consultant to attorney(s) and/or the court.

3 REHB 672 Law and the Forensic Rehabilitation Consultant 3 4. Demonstrate knowledge of court procedures, including the implications of various legal precedents that impact on the qualifying of the rehabilitation professional as an expert in their discipline, admissibility of evidence and expert opinion, and related areas of issue or concern for the courts in utilizing expert witnesses in general. 5. Demonstrate knowledge of and ability to search and secure appropriate reference materials located within specialized databases for the specific type of litigation, court venue, and needs of differing case characteristics. 6. Demonstrate knowledge of the strengths and limitations of various methodologies (i.e., transferable skills analysis, job placement, etc.), databases and references typically utilized by rehabilitation experts and consultants, such as the D.O.T., O*NET, labor market statistics, salary and wage surveys, labor market forecasts, and how they relate to current requirements for admission of opinion and how they can be attacked by opposing counsel, etc, Course Requirements and Grading Method: A. Requirements: The student will demonstrate the knowledge, critical thinking, and requisite skills pertaining to this course by: 1. Completion of objective written examinations covering all content included in the course. (400 pts.; 40% of final grade) 2. Completion of threaded discussions that address critical concepts and procedures resulting from various laws and precedents, and existing within the diverse areas of litigation within which forensic rehabilitation consultants provide their expertise. (200 pts.; 20%) 3. Demonstrating within a written paper and/or oral presentation, the critical concepts, precedents, procedures, and precedents governing the court and impacting on the admissibility of the forensic rehabilitation expert or consultants opinions. Topics of the assignment will include addressing of strengths and limitations of standard rehabilitation methodologies, procedures, assessment, service determination, job placement, assistive technology and accommodations, etc., within court procedures and justifying their use under the Daubert and other rules. (200 pts.; 20%) 4. Demonstrate the appropriate use of specific databases and other references that would address the roles and functions that rehabilitation consultants would fill within diverse areas of litigation where disabilities, discrimination, catastrophic injury, and/or wrongful death has occurred, according to the characteristics and

4 REHB 672 Law and the Forensic Rehabilitation Consultant 4 needs of individual cases. (200 pts.; 20%) B: Grading Method: A = 90.0% and above. B = 80.0% to 89.9% C = 70.0% to 79.9% D = 60.0% to 69.9% F = 59.9% or below Course Content and Tentative Schedule: Session/ Module Content 1 Overview of Law and the Forensic Rehabilitation Consultant Personal Injury Motor Vehicle Product Liability Catastrophic Injury with Life Care Plan Worker s Compensation (state and federal) State Federal: Office of Worker s Compensation; Railroad; Maritime and Harbor Workers; Others Social Security: Supplemental Security Disability Income (SSDI) Vocational Expert for SSA Claimant s Vocational Expert Employment Discrimination Wrongful Hiring Wrongful Termination Disparate Treatment State Federal: American s with Disabilities Act; Others Wrongful Death of an Adult Wrongful Death of a Child Family Law: Divorce Others 2 Fundamentals of a Lawsuit 3 The Discovery Process 4 Anatomy of a Civil Trial

5 REHB 672 Law and the Forensic Rehabilitation Consultant 5 5 Evidence and Hearsay 6 Qualifications of the Forensic Rehabilitation Consultant 7 Bulletproofing the Expert CV 8 Properly Forming & Expressing Opinions 9 Methodology 10 Bulletproofing and Expert s Report 11 Connecting with the Jury 12 Preparing to Testify at Deposition & Trial 13 The Expert Deposition 14 Direct Examination 15 Cross-Examination 16 What Clients Look for in an Expert 17 How Attorneys Locate Expert Witnesses 18 Marketing an Expert Witness Practice 19 Fees, Billings, & Collections 20 Expert Witness Liability & Risk Management 21 Privilege, Work Product, & Discovery 22 Communicating with Counsel 23 Ethics & The Expert 24 Handling Abuse