Chief Medical Officer calls for radical overhaul of expert witness programme

30 Oct 2006 10:15 AM

A radical overhaul of the system for providing medical expert witnesses for the family courts is proposed by Professor Sir Liam Donaldson, England's Chief Medical Officer (CMO), in a report out today.

The report, 'Bearing Good Witness: Proposals for reforming the delivery of medical expert evidence in family law case' was commissioned in 2004, following a series of high profile court cases that called into question the quality of medical expert witnesses.

The key proposal is that the NHS establishes a new service - teams of specialist doctors and other professionals in local NHS organisations will group together to improve the quality of the service by introducing mentoring, supervision and peer review, backed up by a new National Knowledge Service to support the medical expert witness programme.

These measures should avoid the risk of reports for the courts being biased by the view of a particular individual, or lacking in the authority that comes from a sound evidence base. It will also address the difficulty in maintaining an adequate supply of medical expert witnesses.

Chief Medical Officer, Liam Donaldson said:

"It has become increasingly difficult for courts to find doctors willing to come forward as expert witnesses, especially where child abuse is suspected. We need to create a system that both the expert witnesses and general public can be confident is of the highest possible standard.

"These proposals are driven by my conviction that it is the duty of medical professionals and health organisations to safeguard children. Ensuring that the family courts have access to the best information when making decisions that will affect the lives of some of our most vulnerable children is closely linked to that duty."

While it is mostly NHS staff who currently act as witnesses, it is the responsibility of solicitors to source them and pay them. The medical experts act in an individual private capacity. The CMO's report argues that a more structured system of medical expert witness activity should be made available by the NHS.

The costs of experts are currently almost entirely met from public funds. They are shared by the Legal Services and local authorities. The CMO proposes that the NHS should be fully reimbursed for taking on this additional work.

Care Services Minister Ivan Lewis said:

"For the sake of the vulnerable children and families whose future depends on legal judgments, we must secure the best possible medical expertise in public law Children Act cases.

"I hope and expect that the consultation process will draw responses from the widest spectrum of interested parties and organisations who are affected by, and who work with and within the court system."

Lord Justice Thorpe, Head of International Family Law for England & Wales said:

"This is the first time that an in-depth and comprehensive study has been made of the whole system for providing medical expertise to the Family Court. I hope the proposals will provoke active debate among all the professions concerned and that they will lead to sustainable changes."

Sir Ronald De Witt, Chief Executive of Her Majesty's Court Service said:

"I welcome the report's overall objective to improve the quality and supply of medical expert witnesses provided to the family courts. I see this as a positive step forward in working towards the development of a larger pool of experts, within a framework that will also provide quality and cost control."

Other proposals within the report include:

- how the new service could be commissioned in the future;

- looking into how the NHS teams could be accredited; a new national knowledge service to provide the medical expert witness programme with advice on the state of current scientific knowledge;

- training on the knowledge and skills needed in court settings to be part of basic and continuing medical education.

Meanwhile, the report suggests a checklist to be used by the legal professions to establish the credentials of prospective medical expert witnesses.

Notes to editors

1. For enquiries, please contact 020 7210 4850.

2. How to respond to this consultation: Participants should complete the questionnaire, which they can access at
http://www.dh.gov.uk/Consultations/LiveConsultations/fs/en and send it to medical.expert.witnesses@dh.gsi.gov.uk or they can write to or enquire to Noel Durkin, Department of Health, Room 211, Wellington House, 133 - 155 Waterloo Road, London, SE1 8UG, telephone 020 7972 4152.

3. The consultation will close on 28th February 2007.

4. The report and an accompanying statistical analysis of a survey of doctors, goes out for consultation today.