Legal Work
The general principle in all Appeals & Claims is that all witnesses are expected to assist the Tribunal by giving full, frank & honest evidence in a fair, impartial and independent way, regardless of whether they are employed by, or paid by, one of the parties.
It is important that those instructing us to act as expert witnesses, because of our experience, expertise & specialist knowledge, fully understand that we must abide with the overriding objective of assisting the Tribunal or the Court. Witnesses must put their duty to co-operate with the Tribunal/Court first before any obligation to a person or body instructing them or who pays them.
We accept instructions if we are certain we have the expertise in the relevant area and will refuse instructions if we feel these go beyond our remit. We accept cases from public funding bodies; such as the Legal Services Commission (LSC), private individuals, solicitors, Local Authorities and charities who fund cases.
Guidance for witnesses who seek to give expert evidence in Special Educational Needs & Disabilities (SEND) Appeals & Family Courts are generally available.
The general principles are:
1. Knowledge and Understanding
Expert witnesses should be able to demonstrate:
2. Communication and Liaison
It is in the child’s best interests, and beneficial to all those involved, for experts to communicate from the outset in an open & transparent process. Witnesses should take reasonable steps to co-operate with colleagues for the child’s benefit.
3. Evidence
The approach to information gathering, assessment, presentation of facts, conclusions & the giving of evidence must be based on: ·
4. Reports/Statements
In writing a report, for whatever initial purpose, all expert witnesses must abide by any individual professional code of conduct. They should give details of their qualifications & experience, where relevant, and include any other information required by their codes of conduct.
In particular, reports must be based on the principles of knowledge & understanding set out above and be restricted to areas where they have relevant expertise.
Expert reports have a particular format which must cover a number of specific areas and also include a Statement of Truth. These Statements of Truth may vary in reports depending on whether the report is for the Civil, Criminal or Family Courts.
It is for the Court to decide what weight to attach to expert evidence. It will indicate in its Decision whether it accepts the evidence of a particular witness and why it does so in preference to that of another such witness.
In accepting instructions, clients need to be aware that outcomes from assessments may not support their case.
Please contact the educational psychology practice to find about our fees for legal work.
Adapted from Judge John Aitken, Deputy Chamber President, Feb 2012, SEND Expert Guidance Doc - 10290
It is important that those instructing us to act as expert witnesses, because of our experience, expertise & specialist knowledge, fully understand that we must abide with the overriding objective of assisting the Tribunal or the Court. Witnesses must put their duty to co-operate with the Tribunal/Court first before any obligation to a person or body instructing them or who pays them.
We accept instructions if we are certain we have the expertise in the relevant area and will refuse instructions if we feel these go beyond our remit. We accept cases from public funding bodies; such as the Legal Services Commission (LSC), private individuals, solicitors, Local Authorities and charities who fund cases.
Guidance for witnesses who seek to give expert evidence in Special Educational Needs & Disabilities (SEND) Appeals & Family Courts are generally available.
The general principles are:
1. Knowledge and Understanding
Expert witnesses should be able to demonstrate:
- Knowledge of the legal process and their role in it
- Knowledge of the Code of Practice (SEND) and Family Procedure Rules
- An understanding of the issues in the case
- Compliance with all relevant professional codes of conduct & best practice ·
- Up-to-date knowledge of their particular area of expertise
2. Communication and Liaison
It is in the child’s best interests, and beneficial to all those involved, for experts to communicate from the outset in an open & transparent process. Witnesses should take reasonable steps to co-operate with colleagues for the child’s benefit.
3. Evidence
The approach to information gathering, assessment, presentation of facts, conclusions & the giving of evidence must be based on: ·
- Ethical, sound evidence-based standards & principles
- Instructions, where given, that are clear & unambiguous
- Precise factual & objective information that clearly identifies what is within their own knowledge, what is not and the basis for that information
- An accurate identification of needs that is in the child’s interests and is not influenced by any pressure from a party’s wishes or time constraints and which is not resource-led
- Consideration of any previous or planned assessment relevant to their area of knowledge & practice to prevent the possibility of test score invalidation
- Advice that is justifiable & supported by evidence based on the child’s needs and considers any material facts that affect that advice either way ·
- The specification & quantification of any recommendations about provision unless there are clearly stated reasons for not doing so ·
- The identification of any hypothesis (as opposed to fact or opinion)
4. Reports/Statements
In writing a report, for whatever initial purpose, all expert witnesses must abide by any individual professional code of conduct. They should give details of their qualifications & experience, where relevant, and include any other information required by their codes of conduct.
In particular, reports must be based on the principles of knowledge & understanding set out above and be restricted to areas where they have relevant expertise.
Expert reports have a particular format which must cover a number of specific areas and also include a Statement of Truth. These Statements of Truth may vary in reports depending on whether the report is for the Civil, Criminal or Family Courts.
It is for the Court to decide what weight to attach to expert evidence. It will indicate in its Decision whether it accepts the evidence of a particular witness and why it does so in preference to that of another such witness.
In accepting instructions, clients need to be aware that outcomes from assessments may not support their case.
Please contact the educational psychology practice to find about our fees for legal work.
Adapted from Judge John Aitken, Deputy Chamber President, Feb 2012, SEND Expert Guidance Doc - 10290