Expert Witness Discovery In Family Law Matters: Part I

Stephen D. Hamilton, CFLS

Stephen D. Hamilton has been an attorney for 25 years, with a practice devoted almost exclusively to family law for 23 of those years. He has been a Certified Specialist in Family Law since 2004. He is currently a member of the California Family Law Executive Committee, for which he is the Legislation Chair. He is a member of ACFLS and serves on the ACFLS Outreach and Amicus Committees. He is also chairperson of the San Luis Obispo County Family Law Section.

I. Introduction

Most trial lawyers are familiar with the adage: you should never ask a witness a question on cross-examination unless you already know the answer. The rationale behind this adage is that by asking such a question, you are inviting the adverse witness to inform the court of something you do not know or to explain away a point you were trying to make in your cross-examination.