farmdoc's blog post number 174

Last Tuesday I spent an hour in the witness box of the Workers Rehabilitation & Compensation Tribunal in Launceston. There are essentially two types of witnesses – lay witnesses (who aren’t permitted to give opinions) expert witnesses (who are). Expert witnesses require some type of acknowledged expertise, e.g. engineering, accounting. Naturally I’m an expert medical witness. Tuesday’s hearing was before a Commissioner with only a few months experience, and an impatient and overbearing manner. The examination in chief (i.e. questions from the lawyer who called me) was brief. The cross examination (i.e. questions from the opposing lawyer) was lengthy and difficult. Though a nice guy, he asked convoluted questions which I needed time to digest before answering. But the Commissioner repeatedly jumped in, rephrased the lawyer’s questions, badgered me to answer quickly, and in summary was none too courteous and respectful to me. The re-examination (i.e. clarifying questions from the lawyer who called me) was quick – which I always think is a sign I did okay. Nonetheless I left feeling disgruntled. That afternoon I phoned ‘my’ lawyer to debrief. He said I did fine and that if the case is lost it won’t be because of my evidence. That reassured me. So I’ve sent off my invoice, and I’ve put the episode behind me. I’m not letting the turkeys get me down. No way.