Clinical expertise is fundamental to high-quality medical expert evidence. However, becoming an effective expert witness requires more than specialist medical knowledge alone.

Expert witness training helps experienced clinicians understand the legal, procedural and professional responsibilities that apply when providing evidence to the court. It complements clinical expertise with an understanding of independence, report writing, legal procedure, courtroom skills and emerging issues such as artificial intelligence and information security.

At McCollum Consultants, continuing medico-legal education forms an important part of how we support our expert network. The expert witness sector continues to evolve and, alongside their clinical professional development, we encourage our experts to continually develop their understanding of what is expected of them within the legal process.

Why Expert Witness Training Matters

A medical expert witness occupies a different role from a treating clinician.

Under CPR Part 35, an expert’s overriding duty is to help the court on matters within their expertise. That duty overrides any obligation to the individual or organisation instructing or paying them.

Experts must therefore be able to maintain their independence, distinguish between fact and professional opinion, recognise the limits of their expertise and clearly explain the reasoning behind their conclusions.

Clinical practice alone does not necessarily develop these skills.

An experienced consultant may possess decades of specialist knowledge while still benefiting from dedicated training in medico-legal report writing, discussions between experts, legal procedure and giving evidence under cross-examination.

For that reason, we see expert witness development as a continuing process rather than something completed at the beginning of a medico-legal career.

Building on Clinical Expertise

Expert witness work requires clinicians to apply their expertise in a very different context.

Rather than deciding how to treat a patient, experts may need to analyse clinical evidence retrospectively. They may provide an independent opinion on standard of care, breach of duty, causation, condition or prognosis.

Their report must do more than simply state a conclusion. A solicitor, barrister or judge who does not share the expert’s clinical background should be able to follow the evidence considered, understand the reasoning applied and see how the expert has reached their opinion.

Training should never dictate what that opinion is. Its purpose is to give an expert the knowledge and framework required to communicate their own independent professional opinion clearly, objectively and transparently.

Learning from the Legal Profession: McCollum Consultants’ 2026 Expert Witness Training Programme

A central part of the McCollum Consultants 2026 Expert Witness CPD Programme has been giving our experts the opportunity to learn directly from solicitors, barristers and other senior professionals who instruct, analyse and work with expert evidence every day.

Across the 2026 programme, sessions have covered the selection and instruction of experts, critical assessment of expert reports, best-practice guidance and developing case law. They have also addressed courtroom skills, cross-examination, Artificial Intelligence and information security.

Learning from Leading Legal Professionals

The programme has been led by Gerard McDermott KC, with sessions examining the selection and instruction of expert witnesses and the standards expected of expert evidence.

Gerard also led practical courtroom skills training, including a live-style cross-examination of McCollum Consultants expert Dr Hussain Contractor. This gave attending experts first-hand insight into how their reasoning and conclusions may be tested when giving oral evidence.

The series has also welcomed Dr John Sorabji, Associate Professor of Law at University College London, who delivered a keynote on The Future of Expert Evidence in Civil Justice. His contribution considered the role of expert evidence within the wider development of civil justice and how professional standards and expectations may continue to evolve.

Practical Insight from Across the Medico-Legal Sector

An equally valuable part of the programme has been the contribution of highly experienced panel guests from across the medico-legal sector. These have included Peter Walmsley, Catastrophic & Complex Injury at Horwich Farrelly; Sara Stanger, Partner at JMW; and Jennifer Dougal, Managing Director of Premex Group, alongside many other respected contributors specialising in personal injury, catastrophic injury and complex litigation. Together, they provided practical insight into the realities of expert evidence and what legal teams require from the experts they instruct.

Their discussions provided insight into what instructing parties need from an expert, where difficulties can arise within reports and evidence, how an expert’s reasoning may be scrutinised as a case develops, and how experts can make their opinions clearer and more useful to those relying upon them.

Artificial Intelligence and Information Security

The programme has also begun to address the growing impact of technology on expert witness practice. Specialist sessions covering Artificial Intelligence and information security, including input from Graham Thomson of Irwin Mitchell, have explored issues such as confidentiality, secure handling of sensitive information, verification, transparency and professional accountability.

These subjects are increasingly relevant as AI becomes more commonplace across medicine, law and professional services. While technology may offer efficiencies, responsibility for the accuracy and integrity of expert evidence must remain with the expert. Including AI and information security within the wider CPD programme therefore allows experts to consider these developing risks alongside the more established legal and professional responsibilities of their role.

This direct interaction with legal and specialist professionals is particularly valuable because they encounter expert evidence from a different perspective. They understand how apparently small ambiguities or gaps in reasoning can become significant during litigation.

Hearing those perspectives first-hand helps clinicians understand not only what is expected of an expert witness, but why those standards matter in practice.

Developing Courtroom Skills

The programme has also included dedicated courtroom skills and cross-examination training led by Gerard McDermott KC, giving experts practical insight into what it is like to have their evidence tested in court.

Rather than approaching the subject purely in theory, the session included a live-style cross-examination exercise in which Gerard McDermott KC cross-examined McCollum Consultants expert Dr Hussain Contractor. The exercise showed attending experts how counsel can challenge and explore an expert’s reasoning, methodology and conclusions during oral evidence.

An expert may produce an excellent written report but still find the courtroom environment unfamiliar. Giving evidence requires careful listening and clear communication. Experts must also remain objective and composed when others challenge their reasoning.

The purpose of this training is not to teach an expert to defend a position at all costs. An expert is not an advocate.

Instead, practical exercises of this kind reinforce the importance of answering questions honestly, explaining reasoning clearly and acknowledging limitations where appropriate, while giving experts a much clearer understanding of what they may encounter when giving evidence themselves.

Reflections on McCollum Consultants’ Expert Witness Training

“Attendance at McCollum Consultants’ June and September 2026 CPD events strengthened my understanding that high-quality expert evidence depends on independence, transparent reasoning, evidence-based opinion and an overriding duty to the Court.

 I gained valuable insight into responsible AI use, information governance, conflicts of interest and constructive expert discussions. These principles have enhanced my medico-legal practice through more rigorous verification, documentation and impartial reasoning, while also reinforcing equivalent standards in clinical practice—particularly clear record keeping, multidisciplinary decision-making, professional accountability and transparent communication in complex cases.”

– Dr Bode Williams, Consultant Obstetrician and Expert Witness with McCollum Consultants

“While there are now many expert witness updates and events across the country, I think this event is unique in that it brings a group of barristers and solicitors together with us as experts on topics that are highly relevant to our practise. 

Since I have been doing this work for quite a few years, quite a lot of the topics I am already well versed in. However, there are always bits and pieces to pick up, and these events have been useful in that sense. 

The legal system evolves. Medical practise evolves. These sessions, I think, are particularly useful in tracking some of the evolution which is going on. AI is but one of these.”

– Mr Ray Ross, Orthopaedic Spinal Surgeon and Expert Witness with McCollum Consultants

These reflections reinforce the value that McCollum Consultants’ expert witness training brings to our expert witnesses, providing opportunities to learn directly from legal professionals, reflect on their own practice and stay informed as the medico-legal landscape continues to evolve. By combining established principles with emerging issues, the training supports our experts in maintaining the high professional standards expected of modern expert evidence.

Supporting High Standards in Expert Evidence

Clinical expertise will always be the foundation of medical expert evidence. However, the role of the expert witness continues to develop alongside changes in law, professional guidance, technology and the expectations of the courts.

At McCollum Consultants, supporting an expert means more than identifying an experienced clinician. It means creating opportunities for continued learning, constructive discussion and professional development throughout their medico-legal career.

By bringing together medicine and law, and by addressing both established expert witness principles and emerging issues, our training programme helps our experts remain clinically authoritative, independently minded and properly equipped for the responsibilities of modern expert witness practice.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do experienced clinicians need expert witness training?

Clinical experience provides the specialist medical knowledge required to give an opinion. Expert witness training helps clinicians understand how that expertise should be applied and communicated within legal proceedings, including their duty to the court, independence, report writing and oral evidence.

Does expert witness training influence an expert’s opinion?

No. Training should reinforce independence rather than influence the conclusion reached. The expert remains responsible for forming their own professional opinion from the clinical evidence and within the limits of their expertise.

Why is continuing expert witness CPD important?

Law, professional guidance, technology and the expectations surrounding expert evidence continue to develop. Ongoing expert witness training helps experienced experts keep their medico-legal knowledge and working practices under review alongside their clinical professional development.