Psych 101 for Attorneys: Litigating a Psychiatric Injury

Litigating a psychiatric injury case can be a daunting task even for the most seasoned of litigators. Drawing on forty years of experience as a forensic psychologist and litigation attorney, Dr. Michael D’Anton will provide the attendee with a roadmap on how to handle a case involving an alleged psychiatric injury as either plaintiff or defense counsel. First, he will detail the various types of psychiatric injuries and the critical elements of a forensic psychiatric evaluation. He then will provide the attendee with an exhaustive treatment of how to retain an expert and the inherent pitfalls that a practitioner can encounter. Most importantly, he gives the attendee the tools to ferret out uncredentialed and unlicensed charlatans who use “vanity certifications” and degrees from “diploma mills.” Next, he will detail what should be sought in discovery, including areas usually ignored by even the most veteran of practitioners. The ethical requirement of including “collateral information” is explored along with the pitfalls of using an “expert” with a “dual relationship” conflict.

He will present a detailed discourse on psychological testing, particularly neuropsychological evaluations. He will discuss the typical complications with psychiatric examinations, the audio and videotaping of examinations, and the testing of individuals of another ethnic heritage. Deposition and trial preparation strategies are examined along with a discussion on the New Jersey 700 series Rules of Evidence. Included is the author’s perspective that opportunities to disqualify purported experts are often squandered along with a discussion on barring “net opinions.”

Finally, there is a discussion on the common – and often misused – diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, along with traumatic brain injuries.