Kenneth S. Pope, Ph.D., ABPP, James N. Butcher, Ph.D., & Joyce Seelen, J.D.
The following sample agreement between expert witness and attorney is an appendix in The MMPI, MMPI-2, & MMPI-A in Court: A Practical Guide for Expert Witnesses and Attorneys (2nd Edition) published by the American Psychological Association, which holds the copyright to this sample agreement.
In addition to the sample agreement below, some related resources on this site include:
Forensic Assessment Checklist: This list reviews important issues to be addressed in the planning, implementation, reporting, and documentation of a forensic assessment.
Update on Malingering Research: This resource catalogues research on assessing malingering, providing citations and brief summaries of research and review articles that have been published in peer-reviewed scientific and professional journals from January, 2002, to the present.
Ethics Codes & Practice Guidelines for Assessment, Therapy, Counseling, & Forensics: This page presents links to over 75 therapy, counseling, forensic, and related ethics & practice codes developed by professional organizations (e.g., of psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, marriage and family counselors).
Deposition and Cross-examination Questions on Psychological Tests & Psychometrics :This chapter discusses common deposition and cross-examination questions about tests and psychometrics, along with potential responses to those questions.
Psychology Laws & Licensing Boards In Canada & the United States: licensing board addresses & phone numbers; where available links to board web sites; where available, links to documents such as legislation relevant to the practice of psychology in that province or state, application information for a psychology license or registration, and continuing education requirements.
Chapter 5 discussed the different approaches that expert witnesses and attorneys use to reach agreement on fees. This appendix sets forth an example of a fee agreement. What is important is that the written agreement provide a clear understanding between attorney and expert witness about how fees are to be calculated and paid.
The example below requires payment of all fees in advance. Advance payment prevents situations in which the expert witness has conducted an assessment, written a report, billed the attorney, but not received full payment when due.
Any sample agreement, of course, should be adapted to meet the needs of the individual expert witness, the specific circumstances of the assessment, and any applicable legislation, case law, and other standards or regulations in the relevant jurisdiction.
Before using any agreement, the expert witness should always and in all circumstances review the form with his or her own professional liability attorney (i.e., not the attorney who is hiring the individual as an expert witness) to ensure that it fully meets the applicable legal, ethical, and professional standards as well as the needs and approaches of the expert witness.
There is an initial, nonrefundable case-opening, review, and consultation fee of [an amount equal to 10 times the professional's hourly rate] to be paid in advance of opening work on the case.
If work in the [city or town in which expert witness practices] area (i.e., the area within 20 miles of [location of expert witness's office]) during this phase (i.e., before I am retained or disclosed as an expert witness) exceeds 10 hours, an advance of [an amount equal to 10 times the professional's hourly rate] is due immediately; each additional hour (beyond the initial 10) will be billed at the rate of [professional's hourly rate] per hour.
Each time the advance is depleted, a subsequent advance of [an amount equal to 10 times the clinician's hourly rate] is due immediately, against which each additional hour will be billed at the rate of [hourly rate] per hour. Unlike the initial case-opening, review, and consultation fee of [an amount equal to 10 times the expert witness's hourly rate], which is nonrefundable, the unused portion of any of these subsequent [an amount equal to 10 times the expert witness's hourly rate] advances (during this period prior to naming or endorsing me as an expert witness) will be returned should my services no longer be needed.
If, on the basis of the initial review and consultation, you decide to disclose me as an expert witness in the case, an additional nonrefundable payment of [an amount equal to 10 times the expert witness's hourly rate] must be received by me in advance of my being named as an expert witness.
If work in the [city or town] area (i.e., the area within 20 miles of [office]) during this phase exceeds 10 hours, an advance of [an amount equal to 10 times the professional's hourly rate] is due immediately; each additional hour (beyond the initial 10) will be billed at the rate of [hourly rate] per hour.
Each time the advance is depleted, a subsequent advance (for work to be done within [city or town]) of [an amount equal to 10 times the expert witness's hourly rate] is due immediately, against which each additional hour will be billed at the rate of [hourly rate] per hour.
Unlike the [an amount equal to 10 times the professional's hourly rate] fee for case opening and the [an amount equal to 10 times the professional's hourly rate] fee for endorsement as expert witness-both of which are nonrefundable-the unused portion of any of these subsequent [an amount equal to 10 times the professional's hourly rate] advances (during this period prior to naming or endorsing me as an expert witness) will be returned should my services no longer be needed.
It is understood that the opposing attorney(s) will pay my hourly fee for the deposition itself at the time that I am deposed. [As noted in chapter 5, the party or parties responsible for paying an expert witness for time spent in deposition varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.]
For any travel out of [city or town] area, the charge is [eight times the hourly rate] per 24-hour period (or fraction thereof), plus expenses (transportation as discussed, food, lodging, and delivery of documents via such carriers as Federal Express), to be received by me at least 1 week prior to the scheduled departure from the [city or town] area.
If I do not receive any of the payments called for hereunder exactly when due, I shall stop all work and vacate all appointments, in which event you agree to assume sole responsibility for any and all damages or expenses that may result to you or your client(s).
In the event of any litigation arising under the terms of this agreement, the prevailing party shall recover their reasonable attorneys' fees.
If you agree to these terms, please sign below and return a signed copy to me along with the case-opening fee. __________________________________
Attorney's Name Printed or Typed