When: Wednesday, December 6, 2023, 5:30 PM - 7:30 PMWhere: Online or Room 2.10, Second Floor, School of Law, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End Road, London E1 4NS
As part of its ongoing series of conversations around current issues in the legal field, the Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre will be facilitating a thought-provoking conversation around the use of expert evidence in civil and criminal proceedings.
On Wednesday 6 December 2023, we will be hosting a panel discussion on ‘The Challenge of Expert Evidence’ from the perspective of the Courts, legal practitioners and the experts themselves.
The current judicial approach to the admissibility of expert evidence in England and Wales has been described as one of laissez-faire. Too much expert opinion evidence, it is argued, is admitted without adequate scrutiny because no clear test is being applied to determine whether the evidence is sufficiently reliable to be admitted.
An attendant question is the extent to which the Judiciary and legal advocates are equipped to deal with expert, sometimes impenetrable material, and the potential for the perfect storm whereby flawed opinion evidence is delivered to the court, but is not tested in a way that would unearth those flaws, and a judgment is given based on that flawed evidence.
We will be joined by a panel of experts, including:
Her Honour Judge Sarah Cove who sits as a Circuit Judge in the East London Family Court. Sarah regularly hears expert evidence in family cases and decides on whether expert evidence is necessary? She is also a Queen Mary Law School alumni
After the panel discussion, there will be a small reception at the end to meet the panellists and keep the conversation going.
**Please note online joining details will be sent the day before the event.