The need

Attorneys representing a class of contract employees against an insurance company needed a human resources expert to prove their case. The suit alleged that because of a lack of policies regarding treatment of contract employees the defendant treated the class participants like full time employees while they were actually employed as private contractors. As a result, the class argued their retirement benefits were subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s protections and minimal requirements. The ideal expert would need to be well-versed in issues regarding independent contractors.

Our approach

From conversations with the clients, we understood that prior expert witness and testifying experience were required as they would not have time to coach the expert. Additionally, depositions were coming up, so we quickly went to work to find the ideal expert.

The expert

We found an expert with over 40 years of experience in the fields of employment and human resources (HR). He had significant experience working in senior HR roles several prominent companies including temporary employment agencies. As such, his expertise was in independent contractor employment status, and he had consulted in many matters involving the topic. Well respected in his field, he had held professorships at top universities and had authored over 100 publications and three books. Finally, he had been retained as an expert witness in hundreds of matters, many of which involved independent contractor status, and had been deposed and testified at trial countless times.