ABSTRACT
An expert may be asked to present an opinion in two basic ways. The first way is generally called “narrative testimony,” in which the expert, after being qualified, proceeds to present his or her opinion in his or her own words with minimal prompting from the lawyer. We will discuss how to organize and present narrative testimony in Part III. The second way in which expert testimony is presented is by response to hypothetical questions. Because hypothetical questions can easily be misused by lawyers there is a body of law regarding what these questions may and may not include. Most of these legal rules are “court-made” in the common law tradition. Only the following brief paragraph of the codified Rules of Evidence addresses this issue.
