Thousands of judges, attorneys, and court personnel have to deal with experts in the behavioral sciences every day. Expert testimony from behavioral scientists (psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers) is the fastest growing area of expertise in American courts. The U.S. Supreme Court decisions in and have profoundly altered the rules of evidence regarding expert testimony. Recent research demonstrates that the judges, attorneys, and court personnel required to implement those changes have little understanding of how to do this with the behavioral sciences. The have just been amended to reflect the changes wrought by the trilogy. And yet there are no guidelines, practice books, or judicial decision-making manuals that even remotely speak to “gatekeeping” responsibilities with the behavioral sciences.
