Expert Witnesses in Florida
In Florida, an expert witness is a witness who possesses knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education beyond that of an ordinary person and is permitted to offer opinion testimony to assist the judge or jury in understanding evidence or determining a fact in dispute.
Rules Governing Disclosure
Rule 1.280(c)(5)(A) governs discovery concerning experts expected to testify at trial. Through interrogatories, a party may require another party to identify:
1. The identity of each expert expected to testify.
2. The subject matter on which the expert is expected to testify.
3. The substance of the facts and opinions to which the expert is expected to testify.
4. A summary of the grounds for each opinion.
Unlike the federal rules, Florida generally does not require a comprehensive written expert report in every case. Instead, expert opinions are typically disclosed through interrogatory answers, depositions, case management orders, or other court-directed procedures.
Rule 1.280 permits discovery regarding an expert's potential bias, including:
I. The scope of employment in the pending case and the compensation for such service.
II. The expert’s general litigation experience, including the percentage of work performed for plaintiffs and defendants.
III. The identity of other cases, within a reasonable time period, in which the expert has testified by deposition or at trial.
IV. An approximation of the portion of the expert’s involvement as an expert witness, which may be based on the number of hours, percentage of hours, or percentage of earned income derived from serving as an expert witness; however, the expert will not be required to disclose the expert’s earnings as an expert witness or income derived from other services.
Admissibility Standards
Florida follows the Daubert standard for the admissibility of expert testimony. Under Florida Statutes § 90.702, the trial judge serves as a gatekeeper, ensuring that expert testimony is both relevant and reliable before it is presented to the jury.
To admit expert testimony in Florida, the proponent must establish that:
a. The expert is qualified by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education.
b The testimony will assist the trier of fact in understanding the evidence or determining a fact in issue.
c. The testimony is based on sufficient facts or data.
d. The testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods.
e. The expert has reliably applied those principles and methods to the facts of the case.
Attorney–Expert Communication Protection
Under Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.280, materials prepared in anticipation of litigation are protected from discovery. This protection extends to an attorney's mental impressions, legal theories, and litigation strategy. Communications between an attorney and an expert may be protected to the extent they reveal those protected matters.
Compensation
Florida does not cap expert witness fees. Instead, it requires that experts receive reasonable compensation for deposition testimony, permits courts to resolve fee disputes, and allows discovery into the expert's compensation and potential financial bias while protecting experts from having to disclose their total income.
Limits on Number of Expert Witnesses
Florida does not impose a general statewide numerical limit on the number of expert witnesses a party may call in a civil case. There is no rule in the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure or the Florida Evidence Code that restricts each party to a specified number of experts.
Out-of-State Expert Qualification
Florida generally welcomes qualified out-of-state experts. In ordinary civil cases, there is no Florida residency or Florida licensure requirement—qualification is based on expertise under § 90.702. In medical malpractice cases, however, the Legislature has enacted more rigorous qualification standards, including specialty and licensure requirements, and certain out-of-state healthcare professionals must obtain an expert witness certificate before testifying on the applicable standard of care.
