Key Facts
- •Fatal accident and personal injury claim arising from the drowning of Mr. Fawcett in the Dominican Republic during a holiday excursion.
- •Claim brought against TUI UK Limited in contract and tort, applying English law but considering Dominican local standards.
- •Claim value up to £250,000; liability denied.
- •Application to exclude expert evidence from Mr. Tom Magner (defendant's expert) due to alleged lack of expertise, opinions outside expertise, and lack of impartiality.
- •Claimant's expert is Mr. Lucas Gomez, a litigation lawyer in the Dominican Republic.
Legal Principles
A party relying on expert evidence must satisfy the court that the expert is suitably qualified.
White Book at 35.2.1
Expertise can be acquired through relevant experience or qualifications, or both. The bar for sufficient expertise is not particularly high; it goes to weight, not admissibility.
De Sena & Anor v Notaro & Ors [2020] EWHC 1031; Hoyle v Rogers [2014] EWCA Civ 257; R v Robb [1991] Cr.App.R 161
One cannot be an expert by proxy; consulting others to educate oneself in areas where one is not expert is not permissible.
R v Pabon [2018] EWCA (Crim) 420
Overreaching opinions by an expert are treated as a question of weight rather than admissibility; the trial judge can disregard inadmissible parts.
Hoyle v Rogers [2014] EWCA Civ 257; Secretary of State for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform v Aaron [2009] Bus. LR 809
Outcomes
Application to exclude Mr. Magner's evidence dismissed.
The court found sufficient evidence that Mr. Magner possessed relevant expertise regarding Dominican Republic standards. Objections regarding opinions outside his expertise and impartiality were deemed matters for the trial judge's assessment of weight, not admissibility.
Costs to follow the event.
Standard cost order following the dismissal of the application.