Mass Tort Litigation Psychiatry Expert Witness
Mark I. Levy, MD and other members of the fpamed team have conducted over a dozen evaluations of populations involved in mass tort ligation covering catastrophes such as train crashes, multiparty accidents, toxic torts such as water table pollution, asbestos exposure, mold infestation and claims of serious civil rights violations. fpamed has developed a team approach to screening a potentially injured population (and/or “class”), and then focusing in on and performing more detailed forensic assessment of those individuals who appear upon screening to be most significantly damaged.
Enlisting a single team composed of one or more forensic psychiatrists and forensic psychologists to evaluate a population of plaintiffs seeking emotional damages due to a single catastrophic event or continuing circumstance, can benefit both defense and plaintiffs’ counsel by providing the trier of fact with the most accurate, evidence-based opinions about diagnosis, treatment, prognosis and liability.
In our article, we delve into forensic psychiatric case studies and illustrate how information gleaned from these studies can arm our clients with accurate, evidence-based data that can differentiate those claimants who are damaged from those who are not.
Sexual Abuse and PTSD in multi-plaintiff litigation
Mark Levy, MD, DLFAPA, Medical Director, and Charles Saldanha, MD, DFAPA, Assistant Medical Director present fpamed’s unique perspective and team approach to multi-plaintiff litigation involving sexual abuse and PTSD.
Assessing Emotional Damages in Multi-Plaintiff Litigation
This article, written by forensic psychiatrist Mark Levy, MD, together with trial attorney, Michael Larin, Esq., describes fpamed’s unique team approach to assessing emotional damages in multi-plaintiff litigation. Mass tort emotional injury claims can often cost both sides and/or their attorneys substantial sums of money to litigate. Liabilities can reach millions of dollars. Therefore, a team of forensic psychiatric and psychological experts who are specifically experienced with assessing whole populations of litigants and who are armed with the best evidence-based scientific and clinical tools will provide a critical advantage in complex litigation where emotional injury claims comprise a significant portion of the total damages.
The Use of Forensic Psychiatry in Catastrophic Injury and Multi-Party Litigation
This article written by forensic psychiatrist Mark Levy MD, together with trial attorney Michael Fox, Esq. and published in Bloomberg’s BNA Insights, describes the use of a forensic psychiatric and psychological team to assess emotional damages claims in mass tort litigation following a catastrophic event. The authors—one an attorney, the other a forensic psychiatrist—offer a primer on the use of forensic psychiatric evidence in catastrophic injury and mass tort claims, including advice on the practical, legal and ethical issues that arise in these cases.
Case Studies
Victim’s Relatives and Survivors of a Workplace Shooting Spree
Client: Xerox
Case Type: Multi-plaintiff/Mass-Tort
Survivors of a Commuter Train Crash
Case Type: Multi-plaintiff