What is Expert Witnessing and Who Can Serve as an Expert Witness?
In courts, individuals specialized in professional fields are consulted to help resolve disputes. These individuals are called expert witnesses. Expert witnesses provide information to the court at the request of judges or prosecutors by specializing in a specific professional field and assessing disputes.
There are certain requirements to become an expert witness. These include: being at least 25 years old, having legal capacity, possessing at least five years of work experience in the relevant field, completing basic expert witness training, not having committed crimes specified by law against the state, and not having been dismissed from public service due to disciplinary action. The written expert report submitted by the appointed expert as a result of their examination is considered binding evidence. Judges and prosecutors use these reports as a tool to assist in investigation and prosecution. Therefore, these reports serve as an instrument for evaluating evidence.
An expert witness must perform their duties impartially and objectively. They should not provide legal assessments. They are obligated to fulfill the assigned task and cannot delegate it to another person. An expert cannot be assigned without clearly specifying the issue for which their expertise is requested and without defining the scope and limits of the examination. The expert must prepare a report on the dispute, and if deficiencies are observed in the report, an additional report may be requested. Expert witnesses are bound by confidentiality and must not share the cases they are responsible for with third parties. They are required to complete their tasks within the given time frame. Finally, if they consider themselves professionally inadequate for the assigned task, they are obliged to notify the court.