When people hear the term expert witness, they often think of doctors, engineers, or forensic specialists. Can lawyers be expert witnesses in legal cases? In certain legal proceedings, lawyers themselves can serve as expert witnesses based upon their particular training, experience, and deep understanding of a particular area of law place them in a unique position to explain complex legal issues to courts, juries, and arbitrators.
Expertise in Professional Standards and Ethics
One of the most common situations in which lawyers act as expert witnesses is legal malpractice cases. These cases require an expert to testify about what a reasonably competent lawyer would have done under similar circumstances. All lawyers are governed by professional rules of conduct and ethical standards. Attorneys that have significant experience with those rules and ethical standards are most appropriate to evaluate an attorney’s conduct to determine if the attorney followed those standards or violated them.
Their testimony helps judges and juries understand expectations within the legal profession, which are often not intuitive to non-lawyers or even lawyers that have less experience with the professional rules of conduct that govern attorneys.
Plakas Mannos partners David Dingwell and Peter Cahoon have extensive experience with professional and ethics standards in Ohio. Both have decades of experience having served as members of their respective Bar Associations’ Certified Grievance Committees, as well as representing attorneys, law firms, and judicial officials in a wide variety of professional conduct matters.
David Dingwell served for nearly a decade on the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Board of Professional Conduct and served as Board Chairman in 2017 and 2018. During his tenure, he presided over numerous disciplinary hearings, involving a wide variety of ethical issues for attorneys and judicial officials.
Deep Understanding of Legal Standards
Lawyers spend years studying statutes, case law, and procedural rules, followed by practical experience applying them in real cases. This gives them a level of expertise that goes beyond theoretical knowledge. When a case hinges on questions like whether an attorney met the professional standard of care, how a contract should be interpreted, or whether certain litigation practices are customary, a practicing lawyer is often the most qualified person to explain those issues.
Judges, juries, and arbitrators rely on expert witnesses to clarify specialized subjects. When those specialized subjects involve legal matters, skilled lawyers are uniquely equipped to explain how laws are interpreted and applied in practice—not just how they appear on paper.
Legal issues can be dense, technical, and filled with jargon. A strong expert witness must not only know the subject—they must be able to explain it clearly. Experienced lawyers are trained communicators who routinely break down complicated legal concepts for clients, judges, and juries.
As expert witnesses, lawyers can contextualize legal principles, explain why certain strategies are used, and clarify how legal decisions are typically made. This ability to educate without advocating is critical to effective expert testimony.
Unlike purely academic experts, an attorney expert witness often brings decades of real-world practice to the stand. They’ve negotiated contracts, tried cases, advised clients, and navigated the same challenges being examined in the litigation. This practical background allows them to offer informed opinions grounded in how the legal system actually operates. Courts value this practical insight, especially when evaluating reasonableness, judgment calls, or customary practices within the legal profession.
FAQ
Q: What types of cases have you served as an expert witness?
A: We typically will serve as an expert witness in those cases involving allegations that an attorney breached the standard of care owed to a client.
Q: What qualifies you as an expert witness?
A: Depending upon the nature of the case, the attorney’s background and expertise qualifies him or her to serve as an expert. Does the case require an attorney with specialized knowledge of legal ethics? Or does it also require an attorney with specialized knowledge in a particular field of law such as domestic relations, commercial transactions, probate administration, business litigation, real estate law, etc.?
Plakas Mannos attorneys, with particular skills in various fields of law, have served as expert witnesses in various matters.
Q: Why should a lawyer hire you to be an expert witness?
A: When hiring an expert witness, you want someone that has the skills, expertise, and reputation to be able to effectively serve in the role needed. Also important is the need for an independent evaluation in order to provide you with an analysis that will help you better understand your case from the perspective of an outsider’s view. We can help bring new ideas and new strategies to the case that may not have been considered.
Looking for an Experienced Lawyer to Serve as an Expert Witness?
Plakas Mannos provides objective legal analysis and expert testimony to support attorneys and litigation teams. Contact us today to discuss your case and learn how we can possibly assist you.
Our Expert Team
David Dingwell is a member at Plakas Mannos where he provides ethics and professional conduct advisory services, as well as probate, estate, and trust administration and planning.
Peter T. Cahoon is a partner at Plakas Mannos. His areas of practice include divorce/dissolution/legal separation, white collar crimes, and regulatory investigations.
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