Skip to main content

Free Book: Psychological Evaluations in Litigation: A Practical Guide for Attorneys and Insurance Adjusters

    For over 30 years I’ve been doing psychological evaluations in litigation. In 2011 I published the second edition of Psychological Evaluations in Litigation: A Practical Guide for Attorneys and Insurance Adjusters. 

    At this link you’ll find a free copy of my book (https://drleckartwetc.com/wpcontent/uploads/2012/10/FINAL-051311.pdf). No viruses included so you can feel free to open it. Trust me, I’m a doctor! 

    Among the many things you can do with this book is determine if a psych report is flawed. Then when you make that discovery you can try to figure out how you can expose the doctor and their report on cross-examination. This is not an easy task unless you’re both an attorney and a shrink. It can be done and the book tells you how to do it. This is the one hundred thirty-eighth of a series of monthly newsletters aimed at providing information about predeposition/pre-trial consultations, psychological evaluations and treatment that may be of interest to attorneys and insurance adjusters working in the areas of workers’ compensation and personal injury. If you have not received some or all of our past newsletters, and would like copies, send us an email requesting the newsletter(s) that you would like forwarded to you. 

    However, you will probably find that the hard part is figuring out which questions to ask and what to do when the doctor blows smoke up your “you know what.” At that point you can commission me to write an ApricotTM. An ApricotTM is a written report that describes the major flaws that exist in a psych report using easy-to-understand terminology that provides information that an attorney needs to successfully cross-examine a psychiatrist, a psychologist or a neuropsychologist and/or draft a brief for the court. An ApricotTM also provides an extensive list of questions telling you exactly how to cross-examine the doctor to reveal those flaws and get the judge and/or jury on your side leading to victory for your client. 

    If you have any questions, give me a call, I’m always happy to help and there is no charge for talking

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Viewing Psych Reports Through A Different Lens

     I have been doing medical-legal evaluations on a psychological basis for over 30 years. In addition to evaluating patients with personal injury or workers’ compensation claims, I am firmly dedicated to discrediting poorly-written psych reports and helping attorneys see better outcomes with their psych cases. For over 10 years I have been writing Apricots™. Apricots™ are written reports that describe the major flaws that exist in psych reports using easy-to-understand terminology that provides information that an attorney needs to successfully cross-examine a psychiatrist, a psychologist or a neuropsychologist and/or draft a brief for the court. It also provides an extensive list of questions that will expose the flaws in a psych doctor’s report during cross-examination.       Through my work over the years, I have become aware that attorneys who cross-examine psych doctors typically prepare for this task by designing questions directed at the doct...
Post a Comment
Read more

How lawyers can effectively cross-examine psychiatrists and psychologists

G.M. Filisko's article published in July, 2017 ABA Journal states that psychiatrists and psychologists " are among the toughest witnesses to challenge because their testimony can have elements of hearsay as well as subjectivity ."  Filisko further states, "Bruce Leckart, a Los Angeles-based forensic psychologist and professor emeritus of psychology at San Diego State University, has developed a set of rules for cross-examining mental health professionals. One rule is to never ask them about the patient directly but instead confine questions to their report. Another is to always determine whether they have taken a complete history of the patient’s symptoms and complaints to support the diagnosis."     Read the full article here: http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/cross_examine_psychiatrists_psychologists
Post a Comment
Read more

Psychiatrists and Psychological Testing: A Frequent Nightmare

     As a psychologist who helps attorneys effectively cross-examine psychiatrists and psychologists I frequently have the opportunity to read depositions and trial records.       In those cross-examinations, psychiatrists are often asked about the results of psychological testing that is sometimes completely left out of their examinations and reports.       The most bizarre testimonies are in response to questions about their failure to administer a keystone psychological test, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). More often than you might imagine, a psychiatrist will openly testify something like, “I didn’t give an MMPI because I’m not an expert in psychological testing.”       This kind of answer is bizarre because a forensic psychiatrist’s job is to evaluate the patient and arrive at a conclusion about whether or not they have a psychological disorder, and if so, what is it’s likely cause, ...
Post a Comment
Read more