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News & Insights

Expert witness training news

Inspire MediLaw has had a busy start to the year, holding two expert witness training courses in Oxford and Edinburgh.

We have been very lucky to have welcomed two excellent groups of medical professionals, who have thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to network with like-minded peers while training. The range of expertise has been fantastic, from colorectal surgeons to general surgeons, radiologists, ITU consultants, anaesthetists, obstetricians, orthopaedic surgeons, consultant psychiatrists, GPs, cardiologists and neurologists. This has made for some lively discussions and lots of interaction.

Expert witness insights from different perspectives

The training has been outstanding, delivered from three perspectives – the medical expert, medical negligence lawyer and QC. These differing perspectives have been incredibly insightful.

Dr Alastair Bint, our GP Expert Witness, delivered the training on day 1, which focused on being a successful expert witness. Alastair delivered this alongside Lisa Nabou, Inspire MediLaw’s Legal Director and healthcare lawyer for Hill Dickinson.

Alastair runs a very successful medico-legal practice, reporting on approximately 400 alleged medical negligence cases a year for both claimants and defendants. He has appeared in Court on at least 50 occasions. Alastair and Lisa’s sessions focus on the practicalities of setting up a medico-legal practice, understanding your duties as an expert witness, recent case law and tips for writing an effective report.

The interactive session, which involved reviewing and giving feedback on good and bad sample reports, gave delegates a chance to put the learning from the morning session into practice.

The business session proved very popular, giving delegates the opportunity to talk about fees, winning instructions, creating a compelling medico-legal CV, terms and conditions and, most importantly, how to get paid for your work.

The ‘Practice’ session on day 2 focused on the legal aspects of being an expert witness. This was delivered brilliantly by Paul Sankey, Medical Negligence Lawyer and Partner at Enable Law in Oxford, and Ann Logan, Head of Medical Negligence at Balfour and Manson in Edinburgh. Paul and Ann are passionate about ensuring that medical experts are equipped with the right legal knowledge to work as expert witnesses. Both have an interest in educating doctors on consent post-Montgomery, and this has been of particular interest to the surgeons attending the training.

The two QCs running the ‘Perform’ session, Simon Fox QC (Oxford) and Lauren Sutherland QC (Edinburgh), shared their wealth of knowledge and experience with delegates. The process of going to Court is daunting for anyone. But having the Court process simplified and explained has given our delegates the confidence to perform without trepidation when the time comes!

A lot of planning goes into preparing the expert witness training courses to ensure that they cover all the skills and knowledge medical experts need to run a successful medico-legal practice. As Managing Director, I am very proud that, as a team, we have delivered something special.

We are very much looking forward to promoting the talented medical experts we have trained to our legal network and supporting them in running successful medico-legal practices.

Following the training, our support continues with mentorship from our Legal Director and a very experienced team of practice managers who can provide seamless guidance for our experts’ medico-legal businesses.

Find out more about our expert witness training.

If you would like to discuss the training or need any more information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Feedback

The feedback from the delegates has been outstanding. Here are just a few testimonials:

“The course was excellent, as was the overall organisation. The experts were very impressive and informative.”

Dr Michael Johns, GP

“A thoroughly entertaining, comprehensive and inspiring experience.”

Dr Justin Haslam, Consultant Psychiatrist

“A thoroughly enjoyable and stimulating course, presented clearly and insightfully and providing details of medico-legal work.”

Mr William Allum, General Surgeon

“An invaluable course to enable doctors to aspire to success as an expert witness, covering preparation, expert reports, the relevant law and a useful illustration of cases and mock trial scenarios.”

Dr Helen Turner, Consultant Endocrinologist

“Have been on other expert witness training courses. This course is definitely better because it is specifically for medical professionals, which made the discussions and interactive sessions very specific to consultants.”

Dr Rajib Purkayastha, Consultant in Rehabilitation

“A no-brainer for anyone considering medico-legal work. An invaluable insight into the legal world of…medical negligence and consent, presented by committed, passionate experts in their field.”

Miss Mary-Louise Montague, ENT Consultant

“Excellent course. Covered all aspects of medical expert work. Exactly what I needed.”

Dr Stuart Hutcheon, Consultant Cardiologist

“An excellent comprehensive course. I feel more confident regarding report preparation and court appearances now.”

Dr Myles Connor, Consultant Neurologist

“Excellent course for those thinking of developing/starting a career in medical expert witness work.”

Mr Issaq Ahmed, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon

“A fascinating and engaging two days with excellent speakers. Trip to the Court with QC was very informative.”

Dr Bruce Martin, ITU Consultant

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