Engaging Experts

What happens when academic ethics meets the high-stakes arena of expert testimony? Professor Timothy Fort takes us behind the scenes of his journey from ethics scholar to expert witness in major legal battles, including what he describes as "the largest tort case in American legal history."

With remarkable candor, Fort reveals his strategic approach to maintaining ethical independence while navigating the complex chess match of depositions. "I want to hear the words from lawyers that they want my independent opinion," he explains, establishing the foundation for authentic testimony rather than paid advocacy. This commitment to truth allows him to speak with conviction even under intense questioning.

Drawing on his background as a former athlete, Fort shares fascinating parallels between sports strategy and expert testimony. "I was a pro when I got on first base, just chatting up the first baseman," he recalls, describing how this same skill helps him establish rapport with opposing counsel while remaining mindful of the competition at hand. This ability to be simultaneously friendly and strategic exemplifies what Fort calls the "wobbly line" experts must walk.

Perhaps most intriguing is Fort's discussion of "cultural artifacts" – using shared interests in music, sports, or personal stories to build bridges even in adversarial settings. These small human connections don't compromise the competitive nature of legal proceedings but can create a more professional atmosphere where truth emerges more readily.

Whether you're considering expert witness work or simply navigating challenging professional situations, Fort's insights illuminate how ethical integrity and human connection can coexist with strategic communication in competitive environments. Join us for this revealing conversation about ethics, testimony, and finding common ground in the midst of conflict.

The invisible web of global commerce reveals its fragility when put to the ultimate test. Supply chain expert Rob Handfield takes us behind the scenes of what happens when systems break down and legal battles ensue.

As the Bank of America University Distinguished Professor of Supply Chain Management at North Carolina State University, Handfield brings three decades of expertise to bear on some of today's most complex commercial disputes. From his first case with a pharmaceutical giant during the H1N1 pandemic to the avalanche of litigation following COVID-19, his journey illuminates how supply chain management has evolved from an operational function to a strategic imperative with national security implications.

The conversation takes a particularly revealing turn when Handfield recounts joining the Joint Acquisition Task Force in March 2020, working alongside FEMA and DHS to locate critically needed medical supplies. "This opened my eyes to the fact that we were completely and wholly unprepared for this pandemic," he shares, noting the bitter irony that he had authored a pandemic preparedness report a decade earlier that "gathered a lot of dust." This frontline experience revealed America's dangerous dependence on overseas manufacturing for essential products, spurring his research into how companies are adapting to these newly recognized vulnerabilities.

For attorneys and potential expert witnesses alike, Handfield offers valuable insights into effective testimony, emphasizing the importance of integrity, clear communication, and staying within one's expertise. His experience spans domestic and international courts, high-tech patent disputes, and cases requiring complex document translation, demonstrating the global nature of today's supply chain litigation. Through it all, he maintains that the best expert witnesses combine deep knowledge with an educator's ability to make complex concepts accessible to juries.

Subscribe now to hear more conversations with leading experts who bridge the worlds of academia, business, and law while navigating today's most pressing challenges.

In this episode… 

Dr. Seggev discusses with host, Michelle Loux, that two of the current trends he is seeing is how inexpensive marketing research has become and the other is how consumer behavior and research has advanced over the decades. He shares his thoughts on how marketing surveys can go beyond the fundamentals in litigation, which currently focus on class actions and  trademark infringement but he points out that future facts are just as important as past facts. He elaborates, "The impact of an action taken by a company today that is a fraudulent user may last over the next five, ten, or fifteen years. Would survey research determine what the impact would be?"

In this episode… 

Our guest, Ravi Iyer, is a mechanical and electrical engineer. He successfully led project teams, including fixed fee turnkey assignments. He teamed up to start a power/water utility. Clients included developers, utilities, attorneys and financing institutions.  

In this episode with host Michelle Loux, he explains that the first rule of being an expert witness is to be careful when you speak. The second rule is to explain complex things in simple language. The third rule is to answer yes or no when the opposing attorney asks you a question. The last two rules are soft science, which he calls likeability and communication. He recommends “Talking to Strangers” by Malcolm Gladwell, as a great resource for expert witnesses understanding how people communicate.

In this episode…
Our guest, Robert “Bob” Sherwood, has been a senior board member to 30 companies, was profiled in Fortune and Business Week, was the winner of the 1995 Entrepreneur of the Year, sponsored by Ernst & Young, NASDAQ, and Inc. Magazine, presented seminars on Leadership and Technology to more than 3000 executives, and as an Expert Witness, he has testified in court on behalf of such prominent companies as Google, Yahoo!, and Facebook. Bob holds a Series 65 license which covers laws, regulations, ethics, retirement planning and portfolio management.

On this episode, Bob shares stories about the importance of preparation. Whether it is understanding the basic case details before the initial interview or how law firms prepare their experts for the cross-examination, preparation plays a large role on your success as an expert. Bob emphasizes, “You have to prepare much more than you think you should . . .”

Being a successful expert witness is not just about preparation. It’s also about growing with your role and learning to adapt. Early on, Bob did all the expert witness work himself, but realized later that having an effective team in place will benefit him and those attorneys that hire him. For him, having a great editor saved money and time.

Additional insights are shared in this episode, including how to organize case files, the expert’s role on the stand, and not taking cross-examination personally. He expands on this last point, “Experts should realize that no matter how challenging the question is, no matter how personal the questioning gets . . . the lawyer is doing their job.” The benefit of understanding this is that the same lawyer that cross-examined you “may come back and hire you two or three years later because they know you understand that.”

In this episode…
Our guest,  Jim O'Reilly, is a Professor at the Public Health Department of Environmental Health, College of Medicine at the University of Cincinnati. Jim O’Reilly is the last survivor of the group that negotiated the 1975-76 medical device amendments. He was the chair of a 8,000-member American Bar Association's section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice. His first book in 1976 was rejected four times by four publishers, but went on to become a bestseller on FDA regulatory law. He went on to write 56 books and awaits the committee's decision by Thomson Reuters West on his 57th book. 

On this episode, Michelle Loux interviews Jim about his journey as an expert witness in public health. A career highlight was occurred on March 20th, 2000, when his phone rang and the person on the other end said, "Professor, this is John Doe from the Washington Post. What do you think of the United States Supreme Court calling you the expert on FDA law?"  That recognition from the Supreme Court launched his career in new ways as an expert witness. From his years of experience as an arbitrator to being an advisor in a special project for the Deputy Secretary General of the European Union and meeting with 23 other countries to discuss regulatory law, to currently teaching public health, he has an appreciation of what it means to be a successful expert witness. He shares that being an expert witness is a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so be attentive to the limitations  . . . try to be as middle of the road as you can, you want to have good foundational support."

Steve Haas  is the Principal at Tailored Solutions, and a dynamic executive with broad retail experience in planning, buying, merchandising, and operations and has a consistent track record of delivering results across diverse product categories within multiple national retailers.

In this episode…
Our guest,  Steve Haas, is an expert witness with industry expertise spanning large and small retailers in both established and startup mode. His experience, both nationally and internationally, sets the stage for a vibrant conversation about work as a retail industry expert witness.

On this episode, Michelle Loux interviews Steve, discussing  everything from preparing for expert witness interviews with attorneys, to writing expert reports, and body language in the courtroom. Steve also details his passion for the work, and how he hones his role working with legal teams striving for success. 

Laura DiBella  is the Deputy Secretary of Commerce at Enterprise Florida, whose focus is on public and private partnerships in Florida ports, economic development, and international trade. Laura was Florida's first female Secretary of State, and is a proud Floridian championing economic development in the state.

In this episode…
Our guest,  Laura DiBella, is an expert witness with a background in ports, maritime supply chain, and economic development. Her experience as an expert witness is founded in a range of industry experience that includes Nassau County Executive Director of the Economic Development Board,  Executive Director of Florida Harbor Pilots Association, and beyond. 

On this episode, Michelle Loux interviews Laura, discussing  everything from the path to becoming an expert witness to unique experiences that she had during her career. Laura also provides insight on balance and organization as an expert and how her work has increased her confidence. Litigators and experts will walk away from this conversation with some fascinating insight on the professional journey of a renowned expert witness. 

What happens when a former CIA professional hacker steps into the courtroom as an expert witness? Dr. Eric Cole takes us behind the scenes of high-stakes cybersecurity litigation, revealing how his 30+ years of industry experience creates a powerful advantage in patent, trade secret, and breach cases.

The cybersecurity expert witness landscape has a unique challenge – while academic credentials are valuable, real-world historical knowledge is irreplaceable. "College professors are great. They have the foundational knowledge and credentials," Dr. Cole explains, "but having industry experience where you can talk about what happened in 2005 or 2010 is rare." This practical expertise has positioned him as a go-to witness for cases requiring deep technical understanding combined with historical context.

From preparing 1,700-page expert reports to enduring 11-hour depositions, Dr. Cole shares hard-earned wisdom about the expert witness process. He advocates for a proactive approach, functioning as a program manager rather than passively waiting for attorney direction. "The whole approach I take today is: what can I do to make their life as easy as possible?" This philosophy extends to report preparation, where he ensures arguments are supported by multiple evidence sources – creating redundancy that protects against challenges to any single document.

For anyone interested in the intersection of technology and law, this episode offers invaluable insights into how complex technical concepts translate in the courtroom. Whether you're an attorney seeking expert witness guidance, a technical professional considering litigation support, or simply fascinated by cybersecurity's legal dimensions, Dr. Cole's experiences illuminate this specialized field where hacking expertise meets the justice system.

Dr. Nathaniel Herr is a clinical psychologist, currently serving as an associate Professor of Psychology at American University.  His research focuses on the etiology and effects of interpersonal dysfunction, emotion regulation difficulties, and identity disturbance particularly among adults or emerging adults with borderline personality disorder (BPD).

In this episode…
Our guest, Dr. Nathaniel Herr, is a clinical psychologist whose research at the Interpersonal Emotion Lab studies how our emotions influence our interpersonal relationships, and importantly, how our interpersonal relationships influence our emotions. 

On this episode, Michelle Loux interviews Dr. Herr, starting with a recollection of the impact that two expert witnesses left on him during his time as a juror. Their conversation touches on the interpretation of facial expressions, techniques for interpersonal relationships in business, and how to apply these learnings as an expert witness.