The bruised child; making your evidence stand up in court

At some point in any doctor's career, he or she may be required to give evidence in court and if a paediatrician, it may well be regarding a case of possible child abuse. The doctor may be acting as a witness of fact or as an expert witness. In either case, the doctor's prime responsibility is to the court and not to the instructing team or to the clinical care of the child. This is an important distinction as in legal cases it is for the court to decide on the conclusion and outcome of the case and not for the doctor. The doctor is there to put forward their observations on matters of fact or to give an expert opinion, not to judge causation or which sequence of events proposed is correct. It is the doctor's duty always to be objective, impartial and detached and to only give evidence within their area of expertise when appearing as an expert witness. This review outlines the requirements of the court and explains the duties of a doctor when acting as an expert witness with some comment on the duties of a doctor as a professional witness.