Expert Opinion: How to formulate, record, and speak to it
This two day course combines our hugely popular “Formulate and record expert opinion” workshop where you gain the skills and knowledge necessary to form your expert opinion and express it effectively in written format, with practical and interactive opportunities to successfully present expert opinion verbally in presentation and under examination.
Description
Engineers are frequently required to explain their work in an understandable way when giving an expert opinion in a variety of formal situations, such as public meetings and legal disputes.
This workshop is ideal preparation for when you need to give your written expert opinion or voice your expert opinion in formal situations such as:
- Resource consent hearings
- Earthquake insurance claims
- Local authority and public meetings
- Multidisciplinary meetings and enquiries
- Arbitrations or mediations
- Environmental court
- District or High Court
- Presenting before a decisionmaker
- Presenting briefs of evidence or witness statements
Using examples and scenario activities to support your learning, you’ll gain an understanding of the status, obligation, legal and ethical requirements when performing the role of an expert. You’ll also receive guidance on undertaking document and site reviews, preparation of technical reports, witness statements, briefs of evidence, and the ability to express your opinion and the basis for it.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course you’ll feel confident in:
- Explaining and identifying the difference between fact and expert evidence
- Understanding the legal and ethical obligations of the expert
- Preparing written opinion / evidence in line with current standards / best practice – written technical reports, defect tables, witness statements, affidavits, briefs of evidence
- Preparing and presenting Verbal opinion / evidence appropriate to the audience, including preparing for the witness box, response to cross-examination and re-examination.
Target Audience
Engineers of all experience levels and across all branches that are required to produce written expert opinions or speak to their written opinions in a formal setting.
Course Format
The course is delivered as a workshop across two days with a mix of information presentation, discussion, and practical activities to apply learning.
Presenter Information
Dianne Johnson – building surveyor and Matthew Sherwood King – barrister will co-present this workshop.
Matthew Sherwood King has been practicing law since 1984. He began his career as a solicitor for Lovells, one of London’s principal international law firms. Following some years with Bell Gully and Simpson Grierson, in 1999 he opened his own Barrister’s practice from chambers in central Wellington. His work as a Barrister includes:
- acting for clients on tort and contract matters
- trust and property disputes
- environmental issues
- arbitrator in matters involving construction, rental and valuation disputes
- sub-division, planning and other land disputes
- construction disputes.
Matthew is also an instructor for the New Zealand branch of the Australian College of Law legal professionals’ course for young lawyers. Matthew is a Teaching Fellow at Victoria University Law School and has also presented training seminars to other professionals.
Dianne Johnson is the Director of Capital Improvements Ltd. The majority of Dianne’s work is related to helping resolve disputes. This might be as simple as discussing a matter on site or as complex as an expert witness in the High Court.
Dianne is a member of the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors, Women in Construction, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), Resolution Institute and the Society of Construction Law. Dianne also provides technical and subject-matter training to a wide-range of professionals in the building sector.