Florida Legislature Makes Expert Testimony More Difficult To Use

As of July 1^st, Florida has replaced the Frye standard, which was the standard by which expert testimony was admitted.  This past legislative session, a bill passed that adopted the Daubert standard, which has been the law in federal courts.  Although initially intended as a more liberal and progressive means of determining the admissibility of expert testimony, Daubert has become a device used by defendants to slow the litigation process and make it more cumbersome and expensive.  This is particularly relevant now that the Florida court system has been hit with several years of budget cuts.

The new standard amends section 90.702 of the Florida Statuses by abolishing opinion testimony, and requiring expert witness testimonies to be: 1) based on sufficient facts or data, 2) the product of reliable methods and principles, and 3) the expert witness has applied those principles and methods reliably to the facts in the case.   State court judges will play a big role in the law, as they will have to determine whether the standards have been sufficiently met for an expert testimony to be approved for the trial.

Personal injury attorney John Leighton deals with expert witnesses on a daily basis and was called upon by the American Association for Justice to moderate its on July 9^th titled, DAUBERT STRATEGIES AND LITIGATION UPDATE TELESEMINAR.  To purchase a playback of the seminar, please visit http://www.justice.org/cps/rde/xchg/justice/hs.xsl/21368.htm.