ABSTRACT
The standard of care to be adopted by an independent expert is the same standard as that imposed upon any fellow professional. An independent expert must exercise reasonable care and skill in carrying out his or her professional task to the standard of an ordinary skilled man or woman exercising and professing to have that particular skill. Even if the independent expert was negligent, it must be shown that the resultant valuation falls outside the non-negligent values accepted by the court. A dissatisfied party may wish to have the determination set aside by the court as an alternative to an action in negligence. If the dissatisfied party is to issue proceedings, however, the independent expert’s files will be disclosed. A more practical suggestion for a recalcitrant valuer to put forward prior to accepting an appointment as an independent expert might be that the parties make an appointment as an arbitrator under the Arbitration Act 1996.
