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Using Expert Witnesses in a Car Accident Case

Rob Rosasco • Mar 16, 2016

Sometimes, testimony from a bystander isn’t sufficient to show why you’re entitled to damages after a car accident. Expert witnesses can provide an objective, outside perspective based on their expertise in a field to explain to a jury why an accident happened, and why you’re entitled to the money you’ve requested in your personal injury lawsuit. Here is a look at some of the different kinds of expert witnesses whom you may need in a Virginia car accident case.

Economist: In order to support a request for damages, providing expert testimony on the requested amount can help explain to a jury why the requested amount is needed. An economist can calculate a lifelong reduction in earning capacity based on your accident, and what someone with your injuries can expect to spend on lifelong medical care or rehabilitation.

Medical expert: Often times, defendants will argue that your injuries stem not from the accident at issue in the case, but from previous injuries incurred long before a crash. A medical expert can examine you or your medical records to explain why the evidence supports a conclusion that your disabilities resulted from the accident, as well as your prospects for recovery, and an outside perspective on the sort of pain and suffering these injuries likely caused you.

Accident reconstruction expert: While a verbal explanation of how an accident transpired is valuable to a point, it can become much easier for a judge or jury to understand what happened (and why the defendant was at fault) with a computer or physical model of the accident. An accident reconstruction expert can use testimonial and physical evidence from a crash to create these models, or to provide estimates of how fast a driver was traveling at the time of the crash, and whether or not they applied their brakes or steered away from the crash—which could serve as evidence that the driver was intoxicated or distracted when the crash occurred. 

Engineering expert: Some accidents are caused not by a bad driver, but by a bad road or intersection. An engineering expert can provide an explanation of important principles of roadway design or road maintenance, and where the municipality or engineers responsible for the location where you were hurt fell short.

If you’ve been hurt in an accident in Virginia, make sure you’re able to recover all money owed to you as a result of those injuries by contacting Charlottesville personal injury law firm Buck, Toscano & Tereskerz for a consultation on your case, at 434-977-7977.

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