Court Experts and Expert Evidence in Comparative Context: Law, Practice and Reform

Scope

The symposium welcomes interdisciplinary and comparative contributions from legal scholars, forensic scientists and researchers, as well as practitioners involved in the administration and evaluation of expert evidence. Contributions may address, in particular:

• legal models governing the status, qualifications, certification and professional responsibility of court experts;
• standards for assessing the scientific validity, reliability and quality of forensic methods;
• the independence, impartiality and ethical responsibilities of experts;
• the role of expert evidence in criminal investigations and judicial proceedings;
• judicial and adversarial mechanisms for examining, challenging and evaluating expert opinions;
• comparative approaches to expert accreditation, quality assurance and remuneration;
• recent developments in forensic science and their implications for law and legal practice.

The symposium particularly encourages contributions from judges, prosecutors, police and other law-enforcement officers, forensic practitioners, court experts, representatives of forensic institutions and laboratories, and officials responsible for justice administration and legislative policy. The aim is to bring together theoretical, scientific and practical perspectives and to foster dialogue between academia and those directly involved in the operation and development of systems of expert evidence.