Opinion ID: 171064
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: State Farm’s Experts

Text: The Newmans argue that the district court abused its discretion in overruling their motion pursuant to Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharms., Inc., 509 U.S. 579, 589 (1993), to exclude the testimony of State Farm’s expert witnesses, Mr. Scott and Mr. Hardin, as irrelevant and professionally and scientifically unreliable. We review the district court’s decision to admit the expert testimony for an abuse of discretion. Gen. Elec. Co. v. Joiner, 522 U.S. 136, 138-39, 146 (1997). We will reverse only if we have “a definite and firm conviction that the [district] court has made a clear error of judgment or exceeded the bounds of permissible choice in the circumstances.” Ralston v. Smith & Nephew Richards, Inc., 275 F.3d 965, 968-69 (10th Cir. 2001) (quotation omitted). If scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training or education, may testify thereto in the form of an opinion or otherwise, if (1) the testimony is based on sufficient facts or data, (2) the testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods, and (3) the witness has applied the principles and methods reliably to the facts of the case. Fed. R. Evid. 702. Under Daubert (and the Federal Rules of Evidence), expert evidence must be both reliable and relevant. 509 U.S. at 589, 597; see Kumho Tire Co. v. Carmichael, 526 U.S 137, 147 (1999). When assessing reliability, courts consider “whether the reasoning or methodology underlying the testimony -14- is scientifically valid and . . . that reasoning or methodology properly can be applied to the facts in issue.” Daubert, 509 U.S. at 592-93. Neither Rule 702 nor Daubert “require a finding that an expert’s proffered testimony reach absolute certainty with regard to the likely truth of a conclusion.” Bitler v. A.O. Smith Corp., 400 F.3d 1227, 1236 n.2 (10th Cir. 2004). “Instead, the plaintiff must show that the method employed by the expert in reaching the conclusion is scientifically sound and that the opinion is based on facts which satisfy Rule 702’s reliability requirements.” Dodge v. Cotter Corp., 328 F.3d 1212, 1222 (10th Cir. 2003). “Accordingly, a trial court’s focus generally should not be upon the precise conclusions reached by the expert, but on the methodology employed in reaching those conclusions.” Bitler, 400 F.3d at 1233 (citing Daubert, 509 U.S. at 595). But “an expert’s conclusions are not immune from scrutiny: ‘A court may conclude that there is simply too great an analytical gap between the data and the opinion proffered.’” Dodge, 328 F.3d at 1222 (quoting Joiner, 522 U.S. at 146). “As long as an expert stays within the reasonable confines of his subject area, our case law establishes a lack of specialization does not affect the admissibility of the expert opinion, but only its weight.” Ralston, 275 F.3d at 970 (brackets and quotations omitted). In assessing whether an expert’s testimony is relevant, courts “look at the logical relationship between the evidence proffered and the material issue that evidence is supposed to support to determine if it advances the purpose of aiding -15- the trier of fact.” Bitler, 400 F.3d at 1234. “‘Relevant evidence’ is defined as that which has ‘any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence.’” Daubert, 509 U.S. at 587 (quoting Fed. R. Evid. 401). First, the Newmans contend the expert testimony was irrelevant because it did not assist the jury in understanding the evidence or in determining any fact at issue. See Fed. R. Evid. 702. According to the Newmans, State Farm relied on the evidence concerning their motive and opportunity to start the fire and the rumor of arson, not on the tests and opinions of the experts when it denied insurance coverage. This maybe true, but we agree with the district court’s conclusion that the expert evidence was relevant at trial. Both Mr. Scott’s and Mr. Hardin’s testimony related to the incendiary nature of the fire, the issue before the jury. Second, the Newmans contend that the expert testimony and evidence was unreliable. They fault Mr. Hardin (1) for reaching a conclusion that the stove burner was on and then conducting tests to support that conclusion; (2) for having no expertise to conduct metallurgical tests; and (3) for conducting tests that were not similar to the circumstances surrounding the house fire. Because Mr. Scott based his opinion on the opinion of Mr. Hardin, the Newmans contend Mr. Scott’s opinion was also unreliable. Recognizing it was a close question, the district -16- court decided that State Farm “barely” made a sufficient showing of reliability and that the issues concerning the experts’ opinions go to weight rather than to admissibility. Aplt. App., Vol. 2 at 218. We agree. Mr. Hardin conducted two experiments to support his belief that the stove burner was on at the time of the fire. In the first experiment, he placed a skillet on an electric burner and left the burner on until it reached maximum temperature. In his second experiment, he placed a skillet on a burner that was not turned on and put the burner and skillet in a kiln until the kiln reached maximum temperature. The experiments were conducted at a lesser temperature and for a lesser amount of time than the fire, as there was no practical way to actually recreate the fire. But as the Newmans point out, Mr. Hardin never placed a skillet on a burner, turned the burner on, and then put the two in the kiln. Further, as the Newmans contend, there was no significant difference in the results of the two tests, because both ended up with a burner imprint on the bottom of the skillet, just like the skillet in the fire, even though the branding on the skillet that had been on the skillet in the kiln was less visible. Thus, they maintain the results of the testing do not establish the burner was on at the time of the fire. Additionally, the Newmans appropriately fault Mr. Hardin for using new skillets when conducting his tests and for not nesting one skillet inside of another for the tests. Lastly, they note he did not express an opinion as to the fire’s cause. -17- Despite these criticisms, we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in concluding that Mr. Hardin’s testimony was sufficiently reliable, so that the jury should decide what weight to give to the evidence. Although Mr. Hardin was not a metallurgist, he did consult with one. And it was Mr. Hardin’s opinion that the fire was incendiary. The Newmans vigorously cross-examined Mr. Hardin and presented their own expert witness disputing the incendiary nature of the fire. See Daubert, 509 U.S. at 596 (“Vigorous cross-examination, presentation of contrary evidence, and careful instruction on the burden of proof are the traditional and appropriate means of attacking shaky but admissible evidence.”). Additionally, the jury instructions advised the jury to give the experts’ testimony the weight the jury believed to be proper. With respect to Mr. Scott, the Newmans contend his testimony that the fire had an incendiary origin was unreliable because it was based on Mr. Hardin’s unreliable investigation. Because we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in allowing Mr. Hardin’s testimony, we also conclude the district court did not abuse its discretion in allowing Mr. Scott’s testimony. The Newmans also fault Mr. Scott for claiming there were signs of excessive heat. The Newmans provided an expert contradicting this testimony. Thus, it was for the jury to decide which expert to believe. -18-