The biggest event of the Bond Solon calendar is over for another year, but the conference working group is already looking ahead to next year’s Expert Witness Conference, taking place on Friday 7 November 2025 at Church House, Westminster and virtually on Swapcard.
We have exciting plans to share in due course, but in the meantime, if you would like to join the 80+ experts who have already secured their place for next year, please do not hesitate to contact a member of the team on 020 7549 2549 or follow this link to book online.
Thank you to everyone that joined us to make it a fabulous event last week, including our brilliant speakers, chairs, and sponsors – you truly made it a conference to remember!
8:30am
In-person delegates began to arrive at Church House, climbing the grand staircase into the exhibition rooms where refreshments were being served. There were a wide range of exhibitors ready to meet and greet, including our lead sponsor Expert Witness, but also ALLDOQ, the specialist workplace for medico-legal experts, British Medical Experts, Expert Witness Institute, Facilitate Expert Solutions, MAPs Medical, Medical & Legal Admin Services, Maudsley Private Care, McCollum Consultants, NRC Medical Experts, National Crime Agency, Premex and The Expert Witness Site.
9.45am
Bond Solon’s founder Mark Solon opened the conference, followed by Bar Council chair Sam Townend KC, who delivered a talk on experts’ independence and duty. Sam highlighted how the courts manage these dynamics and emphasised the importance of maintaining independence, objectivity, and adherence to high ethical standards. Ultimately, he called on experts and the wider legal profession to collaborate to find solutions and address the challenges in expert evidence.
10:30am
The morning session continued with a talk by the commissioner at the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) Robert Ward CBE KC (Hon), and John Curtis, barrister and in-house counsel at the CCRC. Together, they explained the vital work of the CCRC in investigating potential miscarriages of justice in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland – many of which involve complex reviews of expert witness evidence. Robert also explained that in most CCRC cases experts are not instructed via legal representation, so it is vital that those experts are aware of the relevant procedure and duty to the court. He also invited experts to put themselves forward as guest speakers and to address CCRC staff on new fields of expertise.
11:30am
After a brief tea (or coffee) break, we resumed with the Annual Legal Update from barrister and senior Bond Solon expert witness trainer Nick Deal. Nick provided insightful commentary on expert evidence in the recent Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, as well as the high-profile Lucy Letby case. He also ran delegates through some important updates on civil process, including the fact that the Civil Procedure Rule Committee is considering an amendment to the rules around the disclosure of court documents. At present non-parties to a case are allowed to request access to court documents and a decision is made on the merits of their reasons for wanting it. The proposed change would create a presumption in favour of disclosure. “In other words,” Nick explained, “individuals might ‘go shopping’ to see when you said the opposite to what you're now saying”.
12:30pm
This year, we were delighted to hear from Paul Philip, chief executive of the Solicitors Regulation Authority, who tackled some of the critical issues that experts face when working with instructing solicitors. Drawing on insights from the Bond Solon survey, Paul highlighted recurring challenges, including undue pressure to deliver favourable opinions and issues around delayed or non-payment of fees. He urged experts to report concerning behaviours to the regulator, saying: “If these things go unchecked, they will just continue.” However, he warned experts that complaints must be substantiated and made it clear that while repeat non-payment of fees could fall within the SRA’s remit to investigate, there is no compensation or reimbursement fund for fees.
After breaking for lunch, the conference dispersed into the following parallel sessions:
- Medico-legal with Shivi Nathan, partner at Fieldfisher and Michael Mylonas KC, Serjeants' Inn Chambers. Shivi explained how medico-legal experts are instructed and what they should expect from that process, while Michael highlighted the pitfalls for unprepared or overworked experts when they present anything less than watertight evidence in court.
- Criminal with Melanie Simpson KC, Doughty Street and Tony Saggers, former head of expert evidence at the Serious Organised Crime Agency and National Crime Agency. This jointly run session provided updates on issues, emerging trends and best practice for expert witnesses involved in criminal cases, from both the defence and prosecution perspective.
- Commercial with Lucinda Orr, partner at Enyo Law, who provided an update on the current state of expert evidence for expert witnesses involved in commercial cases. Lucinda shared her substantial experience of complex, high value cross-border litigation and long trials.
- Family with Kate Branigan KC, 4PB, who explained all the latest developments in family law and procedure. Branigan specialises in serious and complex children cases both public and private law.
3:30pm
The afternoon continued with a session by Kain Knight consultant senior costs Lawyer, Chris Butler. As well as describing exactly what a costs lawyer does and some of the methodology around calculating costs, Chris addressed how experts can ensure they receive fair compensation for their work.
4:00pm
The final session of the day was a thought-provoking discussion between Julian Acratopulo, head of the international commercial litigation group at Clifford Chance, and Haydn Kelly, consultant podiatrist and international expert witness, on the working relationship between experts and solicitors. Facilitated by Mark Solon, the conversation looked at the need for clear contracts, and timely payment of fees by solicitors, as well as addressing the potential for conflicts of interest.
5:00pm
The Bond Solon team joined the experts at Church House in toasting the conference with a drink’s reception (sponsored by ALLDOQ) and a presentation for some of the new Cardiff University and Aberdeen University Expert Witness Certificate holders, before we all parted ways.
Thanks so much again to everyone who attended this year, Bond Solon very much looks forward to welcoming you back at Church House, Westminster and virtually on Swapcard, on Friday 7 November 2025.