About the Course
Introduction
This CLE course will equip defense counsel in trucking cases, or any case involving a safety expert, to not only prevent the plaintiff's safety expert from inflicting damage but to use the plaintiff's expert to tell the defense's narrative. This webinar will show what useful cross-examination covers and how to neutralize the most significant threats in the case.
Description
Preparing to cross-examine the plaintiff's safety expert begins on the first day of the case. Thorough knowledge of the defendant driver, the company, and the facts gained from interaction with the defendants is critical. Equally important is the knowledge of the safety expert. Many plaintiffs' safety experts appear in numerous cases and may be less prepared. Having complete knowledge of their testimonial history is invaluable.
Defense counsel will benefit from determining if courts have limited or stricken the expert's opinions and contacting the attorney who successfully limited the testimony. A safety expert may have testified in support of the current defense position in a prior case for the plaintiff. Shifting testimony can indicate to the court that the expert may tailor opinions to fit the client's needs.
Dissecting the safety expert's report is both an art and a skill. Where the expert lacks all of the information, the defense can get an admission that the expert did not have the whole story from the plaintiff and exploit that fact to the advantage of the defense. Counsel should also examine the reports to identify where the expert's testimony was contradictory in different cases with similar facts.
Listen as this experienced panel shows how to establish the expert's bias, demonstrate the expert's shaky foundation, and get the plaintiff's safety expert to help tell the defense narrative to the jury.
Presented By
Mr. Hefflefinger is a partner in Chartwell’s Peoria office. He is an accomplished trial lawyer who focuses on the transportation and construction industries. Mr. Hefflefinger represents businesses, large self-insured organizations, insurance carriers, and employers in state and federal courts throughout the midwestern United States. His effectiveness in dealing with catastrophic losses is well-known throughout the trucking industry, as he is frequently contacted immediately after catastrophic losses to visit accident scenes and develop strategies with an eye toward successful resolutions in potential litigations. Mr. Hefflefinger has been named to the Illinois Super Lawyers list and is an AV-rated lawyer by Martindale-Hubbell. He was recently accepted into Litigation Counsel of America and Lawyers of Distinction, an invitation-only organization of lawyers, judges, and law faculty that recognizes less than 1% of attorneys nationwide for achievements at the highest level of the legal profession. Mr. Hefflefinger is also a Fellow of the American Bar Association. He is a frequent speaker on cutting-edge trucking-related litigation topics around the country. In 2000, InterBusiness Issues, a leading publication in Central Illinois, named Matt one of its “40 Leaders Under 40.”
Mr. Hughes is an accomplished trial lawyer who also counsels commercial and transportation businesses on the management and avoidance of risk. He has been named a Top 100 Lawyer in Los Angeles by the Los Angeles Business Journal and is counted on by Fortune 500 companies, closely held businesses, emerging upstarts, and individuals facing litigation. Outside of the courtroom, Mr. Hughes is devoted to meeting the needs of growing and established businesses facing complex challenges. Named a 2023 Business of Law Visionary by the Los Angeles Times, he collaborates with clients to achieve profit-maximizing results, including artful management of client time, resources, and human capital, resulting in client saving/recovery of tens of millions of dollars. Mr. Hughes has experience handling matters in intellectual property, cyber litigation, contractual disputes involving trade secrets/non-solicitation/non-competes, real estate disputes, and fiduciary/shareholder matters. He also defends class action lawsuits including those arising out of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the California Consumer Privacy Act, and many others. Mr. Hughes leads Clark Hill’s Transportation practice and manages emergency accident response teams nationwide. Bringing proficiency with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, he defends clients in catastrophic accidents, including wrongful death, traumatic brain injury, quadriplegic and paraplegic matters.
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
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Date + Time
- event
Tuesday, July 21, 2026
- schedule
1:00 p.m. ET/10:00 a.m. PT
I. The role of the plaintiff's safety expert
II. How to "know your client"
III. How to investigate the plaintiff's safety expert
IV. Leveraging instances where the expert's testimony was limited
V. Understanding the expert's report
VI. The role of defense experts
VII. Structuring the cross-examination
The panel will review these and other essential topics:
- Knowing the client and the story
- Discovering all there is to know about an expert
- Dissecting the expert's report
- Structuring cross-examination so that the expert helps tell the defense narrative
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