EXPERT IN COURT

Why appoint an expert as well as an attorney, and is it necessary to appoint both in Court cases?

It is possible that for specific cases such as matters that involve real estate properties or medical malpractice issues, for example, an Italian lawyer will also advise the party to appoint an expert, aka known as the “consulente tecnico di parte” (CTP). The appraiser  will possess the pertinent technical or scientific knowledge and will cooperate with the party’s lawyer, providing specific information to be used by the attorney in the client’s best interest.

The Italian civil procedural system also establishes, in article 191 of the code of civil procedure, that the judge can appoint an expert in order to gain a better understanding of the matter to be judged, aka “consulente tecnico d’ufficio”(CTU); this expert, a third independent party in the proceedings, will swear to carry out the assignment faithfully and correctly, for the sole purpose of helping the judge to comprehend the truth.

This expert will provide specific answers to the queries posed by the judge. The name of the judge’s expert will be selected from a list of experts held in Court. In the event that the CTU appointment is granted by the judge, each party will also have the opportunity to appoint an appraiser (CTP), although they remain free to decide against appointing a CTP.

The parties’ expert will cooperate with the judge’s, and they are all invested with a very important role in resolving the issues that, in technical cases, depend on very precise evaluations. The judge’s expert will draft an appraisal that will be filed with the Court, providing answers to the judge’s queries.

The party’s expert is paid by the appointing party and each party is free to choose any professional, without needing to choose from a set list as the judge does.

If you are seeking for more information on Civil Law, contact one of our lawyers, by filling out the form below