Treating Physician

In early May, the Ninth Circuit handed down its opinion in Goodman v. Staples, a case that examined when a treating physician becomes an expert witness for purposes of the written disclosure requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a)(2). Rule 26(a)(2) requires parties to disclose a written report for each expert witness the party intends to call, stating the opinions they plan to express and the scientific basis for those opinions. Traditionally, treating physicians are exempt from providing the opposing parties with this written report because they aren’t "specifically retained to provide expert testimony." FED. R. CIV. P. 26(a)(2)(B). Instead, treating physicians testify on what they actually saw or did with a given patient. read more