Expert Witness & Consultancy Services

Leeships expert witness services:

Leeships team of marine experts and engineers are regularly called upon to give an expert opinion, diagnosis or insight in the often complex disputes than can arise between parties
in the shipping sector. An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as an expert in their field or in their subject.

An Expert Witness can be anyone with knowledge or experience of a particular field or discipline beyond that to be expected of a layman. The Expert Witness's duty is to give to the Court or tribunal an impartial opinion on particular aspects of matters within his expertise which are in dispute. 

Legal Disputes & Litigation
Expert Witnesses play a fundamental role within the UK’s judicial system by providing opinion evidence to assist courts in reaching decisions. They may be called to give evidence in a wide variety of legal forums such as the civil courts or at arbitration hearings. 

Expert Witness work
Expert Witnesses may be asked to write a report or statement and be called to give evidence in a wide variety of legal forums. Shipping & Insurance cases are usually heard in civil courts such as the Royal Courts of Justice, or at an arbitration hearing in London and around the world.

Typical cases can involve any type of marine claim, whether it is a collision, contact with a fixed object, machinery failure, speed & performance claim, fire, salvage, sinking, cargo damage, etc. The discipline required may be a marine engineer, a master mariner or a naval architect, and on some occasions all three.

Examples of the type of cases where Expert Witnesses have given evidence include:
New-Building contract disputes
Disputes between project managers and shipyard representatives
Disputes between vessel managers and vessel owners
Arbitration on technical issues in dispute
Charter party disputes
MOA disputes
Condition on delivery disputes
Bunker disputes
Speed and performance disputes
Cargo disputes
Machinery failures
Vessel navigation disputes
Structural issues
Stability analysis using GHS software and AutoCAD illustrations
Injury claims and cargo stow collapse
Case studies
Case analysis

Leeships are available to assist in this area and welcome new clients that require our services.