Vocational Expert Engagement Process

The engagement agreement comes first. It confirms the assignment, records the conflict check, and fixes the scope, the retainer and the deadlines before any record is opened. Counsel sends the scheduling order or disclosure deadline with the file so the report date is set from the start, and the retainer is confirmed in writing at the same time, so no phase begins on an open question.

The medical file with any functional capacity or return-to-work assessment; the educational, vocational and employment records, including the earnings history; deposition transcripts and any prior expert report on vocational issues; and the scheduling order or disclosure deadline that governs the report. The report documents what was and was not reviewed, and the records guide explains what each item contributes to the opinion.

No. The interview and standardized testing are scheduled when appropriate, typically when direct observation, testing or demeanor would bear on the opinion. A records-only review is possible when the file is complete and direct observation would add little; the in-person versus file review comparison sets out the trade-offs in depth, cost and typical use, and the choice is made at scoping with counsel.

A written report that compares pre-injury and post-injury vocational and earning capacity and documents the methodology, the data sources and the opinions, prepared to the admissibility and disclosure standards of the forum. A critique of an opposing opinion is delivered as a separate written review when that scope is retained, and supplemental opinions follow as new records or rebuttal reports are produced.

Yes. The review scope is a written critique of the opposing report: the records it relied on, the restrictions it applied, its occupational analysis, its labor market evidence and its wage sources. It is scoped on its own once that report is disclosed and can stand alone or be added to an evaluation already under way, so the same expert can carry both assignments.

Vocational services are led by Matthew Putts, the Chief of Rehabilitation Services, a licensed professional counselor and certified rehabilitation counselor. The vocational rehabilitation experts who also prepare evaluations are listed on the team page, and the expert who prepares the report is the one who testifies on it, so the deposition and trial phases stay with the same person from the first record to the last question.