Ford v. Ford Motor Co.

311 F. Supp. 3d 667
CourtDistrict Court, D. New Jersey
DecidedOctober 27, 2017
Docket1:15–cv–357 (NLH/KMW)(consolidated)
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 311 F. Supp. 3d 667 (Ford v. Ford Motor Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. New Jersey primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ford v. Ford Motor Co., 311 F. Supp. 3d 667 (D.N.J. 2017).

Opinion

III.

Defendants ask this Court to exclude the testimony of Plaintiffs' expert witness, Zazula. Defendants claim Zazula is unqualified and that his opinions are speculative and unreliable.

Federal Rule of Evidence 702 provides:

A witness who is qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education may testify in the form of an opinion or otherwise if:
(a) the expert's scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will help the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue;
(b) the testimony is based on sufficient facts or data;
(c) the testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods; and
(d) the expert has reliably applied the principles and methods to the facts of the case.

The Third Circuit has described the requirements of Federal Rule of Evidence 702 as a "trilogy of restrictions on expert testimony: qualification, reliability and fit." Calhoun v. Yamaha Motor Corp., 350 F.3d 316, 321 (3d Cir. 2003) (quoting Schneider ex rel. Estate of Schneider v. Fried, 320 F.3d 396, 405 (3d Cir. 2003) ). "[T]he district court acts as a gatekeeper, preventing opinion testimony that does not meet the requirements of qualification, reliability and fit from reaching the jury." Schneider, 320 F.3d at 404. Defendants contest each prong of this "trilogy of restrictions."

"The party offering the expert testimony bears the burden of establishing the existence of each factor by a preponderance of the evidence." Raritan Baykeeper, Inc. v. NL Indus., No. 09-4117, 2017 WL 3568401, at *2 (D.N.J. Aug. 16, 2017).

A. Whether Zazula is qualified.

A witness "must be qualified to testify as an expert." Calhoun, 350 F.3d at 321. This "requires 'that the witness possess specialized expertise.' " Id. (quoting Schneider, 320 F.3d at 405 ). However, the Third Circuit "interpret[s] this requirement liberally," and an expert can be qualified through "a broad range of knowledge, skills, and training." Id. (quoting In re Paoli R.R. Yard PCB Litig., 35 F.3d 717, 741 (3d Cir. 1994) ). This "liberal policy of *674admissibility extends to the substantive as well as the formal qualification of experts." In re Paoli, 35 F.3d at 741. The Third Circuit has "eschewed imposing overly rigorous requirements of expertise and ha[s] been satisfied with more generalized qualifications." Id.

Defendants argue there are several deficiencies with Zazula's qualifications. First, Defendants highlight that Zazula's highest level of completed education is high school, and that he never obtained an advanced degree. Defendants also argue Zazula's experience does not qualify him as an expert.

As to Zazula's education, this Court finds Zazula's lack of an advanced degree in fire science or any technical science for that matter does not bar his qualification as an expert witness. Further, Zazula is not completely lacking in formal education.

Zazula testified at his deposition as follows with regard to his education. Zazula started attending college in 1985 at Camden County College. He took general education courses, but did not receive a degree. Around 1988, he enrolled at Rowan University to pursue a degree in fire science.5 In 1999, Zazula left Rowan University. In the mid-2000s, Zazula re-enrolled at Camden County College in its fire science program in pursuit of an associate's degree. Zazula stayed at Camden County College for a year-and-a-half but did not complete his degree. Zazula started at Thomas Edison University in 2007. He was enrolled there for around eighteen months until they discontinued their fire science program.

"[I]t is an abuse of discretion to exclude testimony simply because the trial court does not deem the proposed expert to be the best qualified or because the expert does not have the specialization that the court considers most appropriate." Lauria v. AMTRAK, 145 F.3d 593, 598-99 (3d Cir. 1998) (quoting Holbrook v. Lykes Bros. S.S. Co., 80 F.3d 777, 782 (3d Cir. 1996) ). Indeed, experts can be qualified "on the basis of practical experience alone, and a formal degree, title, or educational specialty is not required." Id."[I]nsistence on a certain kind of degree or background is inconsistent" with Third Circuit jurisprudence. In re Paoli R.R. Yard PCB Litig., 916 F.2d 829, 855 (3d Cir. 1990).

While Zazula never obtained a degree, he took several general education courses, as well as several fire science courses. While these alone are not likely to qualify him as an expert, this Court finds Zazula's education coupled with his experience in fire investigations sufficient to survive Defendants' challenge to his qualification as an expert witness.

Zazula testified in his deposition as follows with regard to his experience in the field of fire investigations. At the time of his deposition, Zazula was working as a forensic consultant at IEI Consulting, which "is a forensic consulting firm that conducts investigations to determine the cause and failure of components involved in loss of life, property, and other catastrophic losses."

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311 F. Supp. 3d 667, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ford-v-ford-motor-co-njd-2017.