Utah Code 78B-1-152. Witnesses — Prohibition of expert witness contingent fees in civil actions
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(1) As used in this section, “contingent fee agreement” means an agreement for the provision of testimony or other evidence and related services by an expert witness in a civil action that specifies:
Terms Used In Utah Code 78B-1-152
- Court: means trial court. See Utah Code 78B-1-102
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
- Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
(1)(a) the payment of compensation to the expert witness for the testimony, other evidence, and services is contingent, in whole or in part, upon a judgment being rendered in favor of the plaintiff or defendant in a civil action, upon a favorable settlement being obtained by the plaintiff or defendant in a civil action, or upon the plaintiff in a civil action being awarded in a judgment or settlement damages in at least a specified amount; and
(1)(b) upon satisfaction of the contingency described in Subsection (1)(a) , the compensation to be paid to the expert witness is in a fixed amount or an amount to be determined by a specified formula, including, but not limited to, a percentage of a judgment rendered in favor of the plaintiff or a percentage of a favorable settlement obtained by the plaintiff.
(2) A plaintiff or defendant in a civil action may not engage an expert witness by means of a contingent fee agreement unless approval is sought and received from the court.
(3) An expert witness may be engaged by the plaintiff or defendant on the contingency that the expert actually qualify as an expert. Once the witness is qualified as an expert Subsection (2) applies to his continued participation in the action.