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An attorney has asked you to be an expert witness for a party involved in a lawsuit where the plaintiff is claiming that the defendant’s actions caused monetary damages to the plaintiff’s business.
Required: Prepare an engagement letter as if you were going to be an expert witness to provide an estimation of the business damages. There is a strong possibility that you will be called upon to defend your estimates, along with your assumptions and computations, in court. In the engagement letter, include all necessary details relating to the lawsuit, attorney, and the attorney’s client, so you will have to “make up” names and case numbers. Be certain the letter is comprehensive. You will need to pick which side (plaintiff or defendant) you will hired to serve. You may use any source (Internet search) to find a template to adapt to this assignment. Appendix 1 of your textbook has two sample letters that you may use as a start, but your letter should be more comprehensive and should contain:
1. Case name & docket number.
2. Scope & purpose of engagement.
3. Your qualifications and reference to your CV. (You can make this up.)
4. Review your CV and if they agree to accept you as an expert witness, if the court later removes you from case then not in breach of contract.
5. Retainer required; just make up a dollar amount but be certain it is large enough.
6. Payment will not be contingent on outcome of case, and payment is the sole responsibility of the attorney (not the attorney’s client).
7. The monetary rates for your fees; just make up your hourly fee(s).
8. You are not currently aware of conflict of interest.
9. Resolve disputes through arbitration.
10. What is to be delivered: e.g., expert report containing your calculated damages amount, along with explanations on how those damages were derived.
11. You are not responsible for non-discovery of facts.
12. The attorney, who is your client, must pay for extra expenses you incur.
13. Terms of payment; billing cycle (weekly, monthly, etc.), and interest charged on late payments.
14. Agreed upon communication avenues; e-mail, certified mail, fax, etc.
15. Restrict use of the report and other information you may produce.
16. Remember: The agreement is between you and the attorney, not between you and the attorney’s client (plaintiff or defendant). The attorney is your client.
17. Be certain your letter looks professional at the level a CPA firm would send to a law firm. This must be a letter written in paragraph form, not a simple checklist format.
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