Expert Witness fees are probably one of the heaviest disbursements incurred during civil litigation – long before any settlement or judgment is received by the paying party.
What Expert Costs Typically Cover
The fees that an expert charges for and preparing reports, attending conferences with counsel and giving evidence at trial can vary enormously. A single medical or forensic expert can cost anywhere from £5,000 to £50,000 or more. The rules relating to expert evidence require that only court-approved experts are relied upon by a party and so there is little scope to ‘shop around’ for the lowest cost expert to provide reports on a particular issue whilst a case is running.
Use Disbursement Finance to Pay Upfront
Disbursement funding enables your firm to pay for an expert’s work immediately, but defer repayment until the end of the case.
For Law Firm Finance, see /www.novo-modo.co.uk/commercial-finance-Legal-Firms.
Negotiate Staged Payments With the Expert
Staging payments can be negotiated with an expert to pay for reports, conferences with counsel and trial attendance. This can be structured in writing to pay for each element as they become due.
Factor Costs Into CFA and DBA Structures
Under a Conditional Fee Arrangement or a Damages Based Agreement, expert’s costs are typically ‘capable of being included’ within the overall package of funding arranged by the claimant’s legal team, and should be mapped against the anticipated recovery under the fee arrangement to ensure that such costs remain ‘reasonable’ should the case extend significantly.
Arrange Finance Before You Instruct
Wait until the expert has invoiced your firm and then try to find funding can put a lot of pressure on you and your firm. Identify the likely requirement for expert services during the initial case assessment and arrange for a disbursement facility to be put in place at the same time as taking the initial instructions from the client.
Sorting the funding of expert’s costs as early as possible will help to ensure that all parties are able to focus on winning the case.