After the Evidence is Preserved – Sending the Evidence to a Tire Expert

In a tire case, the most important initial step is to secure and protect the evidence. After this has been accomplished, the tire that has failed will need to be examined by a forensic tire expert. This may seem like a simple straight forward proposition, but getting the tire expert together in the same room with the critical evidence may be subject to more nuances than the inexperienced attorney may suspect.

Miami tire lawyers understand that the tire that has failed, together with the tread pieces that may have detached from the tire are key pieces of evidence which need to be preserved throughout the case so that they may be presented at trial, if necessary. Lose this key evidence and a multi-million dollar case may be lost.

Because there are only a handful of qualified forensic tire experts in the entire world, the tire expert chosen by an attorney may reside far from the location where the tire is being stored. Accordingly, some attorneys will use a delivery service such as FedEx. When such a service is used, overnight delivery with a tracking system should be employed, and upon delivery of the subject tire and tread parts to the expert confirmation should be established between the expert and the attorney.

In order to prevent the tire from being lost in shipping, some injury attorneys have the expert travel to the location where the tire is being stored or the plaintiff attorney’s law office to inspect the tire. Other attorneys have the subject tire delivered to the expert personally, by an investigator or by a courier. This is not always feasible or practicle, and it does not necessarily insure that the tire will arrive without being lost or damaged.

While it is not common, tires which are key evidence in rollover cases have been lost in transit, and with the loss of such evidence the case may also be lost. Because of this concern, great care must be taken at both the sending and receiving ends when a failed tire, together with tread pieces, are sent to an expert for a forensic examination, or sent back to the Plaintiff’s attorney’s office.

This same high degree of care should also be taken when the defendant in a tire defect case requests an opportunity to have one of their own experts examine the tire. In such cases, it is important for tire lawyers to document the chain of custody of the tire, and place the burden on the defendant, to take possession of, and responsibility for, the tire. In the alternative the Plaintiff’s attorney should insist on eliminating the concern about the loss of the tire by having the defendant’s expert come to the plaintiff’s attorney’s office, or the location where the tire is being stored for that expert to complete his or her examination of the tire.

Bottom line: great precaution should be taken to document the chain of custody of a failed tire, or any failed product in a product liability case. Product Liability lawyers must take whatever measures are necessary to reduce the possibility of the loss of the evidence. Nevertheless, practicality and cost consciousness require that shipping, with pre-cautions, also be used in these cases.

At Halpern, Santos & Pinkert, P.A., we have had experience in connecting experts with key evidence throughout the United States and abroad. We understand the special nuances associated with this process in order to protect the interests of the client.