BOOK REVIEW - EXPERT EVIDENCE by Freckleton and Selby Published by Law Book Company Limited, North Ryde, AUSTRALIA

This work comprises four loose leaf volumes and represents a major modern work in the area of expert evidence.  In addition to the legal content, the work includes information on a wide range of specialist scientific areas that might be subject to involvement in the legal process.

The work is typical of many major legal publications in that it is assembled in the form of loose-leaf volumes. Because of this, it allows for continuous updating of information with both new and updated inserts. With the rapid changes to be found in the areas of forensic science, forensic medicine and the law, the loose-leaf series is a practical alternative to the formally bound text book. 

Whilst an Australian work, the specialist areas relating to the individual expert scientific disciplines in which expert evidence is delivered are of course of international relevance.   The same international significance is not usually true for work dealing with the law of evidence.

Although the legal section of the work deals specifically with principles of expert evidence examined from an Australian viewpoint, it deals with the evidential issues by reference to a wide variety of similar jurisdictions particularly those foreign jurisdictions which have their basis in the British Legal System.  This comparative approach is one of the most attractive features of the legal sections of this work, giving it an international relevance so often lacking in this area of legal writing.

Some of the most fascinating areas within the legal sections of this publication are to be found in the areas dealing with comparative legal principles.   Subjects such as the "area of expertise" rule dealing with the Frye test and its multiple variations as well as the ultimate issue rule are good examples of the comparative legal analysis to be found in this work.

The coverage of academic comparative law combined with a pragmatic approach to expert evidence from both the legal and scientific authors is a major feature of this work.  Indeed as the Editors comment in Chapter 2:-

"Skill in communicating complexity in a understandable and memorable way is part of the skill of a good forensic expert".

The application of this viewpoint is itself seen in the way in which this work is structured.  The clarity in which both the legal and scientific principles are described is to be highly commended. The use of real case related examples including transcripts of examination- in-chief and cross-examination together with cartoons, make reference to the legal sections of this work a pleasure for the technical and general reader.

The most impressive feature of this work is the wide range of specialist areas of expertise that are covered from a forensic expert's viewpoint.  These sections written by scientist and technical specialists contain a wealth of information.  These expert reviews form a solid basis upon which a lawyer should be able to understand the skills and practice of an expert in that particular discipline. It would be wrong to assume that these technical, scientific and medical sections are only of use to law practitioners.  The truth is that experts or specialists in one area often have limited knowledge of the work of other forensic experts.  Whilst the forensic medical practitioners will be familiar with the forensic medical disciplines such as pathology, psychiatry and dentistry, their knowledge of forensic accounting and forensic architecture is most probably fairly limited. 

Whilst legal issues and areas of scientific specialty comprise the majority of this work, there are a few smaller sections of the work that should not be overlooked.  Part 2 of the work deals with the area of "Methodology and Research".  Included within this Part is a very substantial review of legal data sources which exceeds the usual library based literature review systems.  Modern information systems, including electronic on-line data sources and materials, are comprehensively covered from a worldwide perspective.

It must be said that not all of the specialist sections are of equal depth.  This is not unexpected in a multi-author work of this size, however, the future updating of the loose-leaf sections will perhaps be the most significant factor in determining this work's long term success. 

To date, several of these updates have already appeared and this, in my opinion, shows the high level of ongoing commitment that the authors and publishers have for this publication.