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Problems with Causation Testimony

By Eric J. Frisch
May 29, 2008

Recently, the Georgia Court of Appeals affirmed a directed verdict based on Daubert principles in a shoulder dystocia case. Hawkins v. OB-GYN Associates, P.A., 2008 WL 820723 (Ga.Ct. App. March 28, 2008). The court reasoned that the expert's testimony was 'unreliable' because of improper use of the 'differential diagnosis' method and the fact that he made unsupported leaps from assumed facts to conclusions without evidentiary or medical/scientific support.

To understand the court's thinking, we examine herein the differences between 'differential diagnosis' and 'differential etiology' as they relate to a Daubert analysis, then look again at the Hawkins decision in light of the medical and legal distinctions between differential diagnosis and differential etiology.

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