Expert Witness Reports

What the report contains

1. Qualifications. Preston’s operating history, consulting practice, certifications, publications, and testimony history, drawn from his CV.
2. Materials reviewed. Every document, video, transcript, and record considered, listed by Bates range or description.
3. Facts from the records. The timeline of service and events as the video, POS data, schedules, and testimony establish it, with the source for each fact.
4. Standards applied. The alcohol-service, training, and hospitality-operations practices relevant to the venue type, including state seller-server requirements and the venue’s own written policies.
5. Opinions. Each opinion stated plainly, followed by the facts and standards on which it rests.
6. Limits. What Preston does not opine on, and what further materials could change the analysis.

What Preston reviews before writing

Video and POS data are the backbone of most reports; schedules, training files, policies, incident reports, and testimony fill in what the venue expected of its staff and what they did. Preston prefers to have the venue’s complete production and the key depositions before a report is due, and will tell counsel if the record is too thin to support an opinion.

How opinions are supported

Every opinion in the report is tied to specific records and to a stated practice or standard, so that at deposition Preston can point to the video timestamp, the tab line, the training certificate, or the policy page behind it. Opinions are stated in operational terms rather than legal ones.

After the report

Preston is available to counsel to walk through the report, to prepare for deposition, to review the opposing expert’s report and prepare a rebuttal, and to update the report if new materials are produced. See deposition and testimony.

Questions counsel ask

How long does a report take?

It depends on the size of the production and the court’s schedule. Preston discusses timing on the first call and will tell counsel promptly if a deadline cannot be met with the materials available.

Does he write rebuttal reports?

Yes. He reviews the opposing hospitality or alcohol-service expert’s report and addresses its factual basis and the standards it applies.

Will he review a draft with counsel?

Yes, consistent with the applicable rules on expert communications, which counsel should confirm for the jurisdiction.