Opinion ID: 1494578
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Expert to Assist the Court.

Text: At the suggestion of the District Court the parties agreed to the appointment of an expert chemist to assist the court in understanding the technical problems involved in the consideration of the exceptions to the special master's report. Both parties contend here that such appointment was proper. Dr. Beckman, a member of the faculty of the California Institute of Technology, was appointed by the trial judge and sat with the trial judge during the argument on these exceptions. The record contains nothing concerning the information or advice given to the judge by Dr. Beckman. Conceding the propriety and even the desirability of such an appointment, and of such information or advice particularly where the parties consent thereto, it is obvious that where expert chemists have testified as to divergent or contradictory views concerning the scientific problems involved in the case, that the appellate court is not in a position to intelligently review the case because of the absence of such information or advice. The question of the alleged indefiniteness of description of the chemical agents used in the patented process, the question of double patenting involving as it does the chemical identity of the agents employed under the water softening patent and the chemicals employed under the modified fatty acid patent, and the question of the chemical identity of the agent used by the appellants with those described in the modified fatty acid patent are all questions based upon chemical science and its nomenclature. A judge who professes his ignorance of this subject and requests the aid of a chemist to be appointed by him in solving the problems presented by the diverse testimony of the experts is almost certain to follow the advice of the neutral expert. How can he do otherwise? If the advice was in the form of sworn testimony given in open court and subject to cross-examination by the parties the method would be more desirable. We do not wish to condemn or criticise the method adopted by the parties and the trial court. It should be pointed out, however, that the parties who have so agreed, to say the least, have an unusually heavy burden in attacking the findings of fact made by the trial court in such a case. The fact is that we do not have before us the same evidence upon which the trial court acted. As we affirm the findings of the trial court under the rules usually applicable to appeals in equity cases it is unnecessary to pursue this subject further. Interlocutory decree affirmed.