Professional Appointments
Medical Examiner and Mental Health Expert Appointments
The Court appoints medical examiners and/or mental health experts for reports or testimony as provided by law. When the need for this arises, the Court will appoint an examiner or expert from the Approved List. The Court may, for good cause, appoint an expert not on the list.
When the Court appoints a medical examiner/expert, the Court shall fax the minute order appointing the medical examiner to the appointed individual. Counsel may provide additional information to the examiner/expert without involving the Court.
If the Court makes an order for an interpreter to be present at the evaluation, the medical examiner/expert shall e-mail the Interpreter Coordinator's office (interpcoor@stanct.org) to request an interpreter for the evaluation.
Fee Schedule for Examinations
Fees for services provided shall be paid out according to the Fee Schedule for Examinations, effective August 1, 2022.
Examiner Unable to Perform Exam
In the event a Court-ordered medical examination cannot be performed for reasons that are beyond the control of the examiner/expert (e.g., defendant uncooperative, client no-show), the examiner/expert may be compensated at the Court-approved or a reduced rate, as approved on a case-by-case basis by the judicial officer depending on the individual circumstances present. The examiner should document the relevant circumstances in the invoice.
Court Hearing Postponed—Payment for Expert Testimony
In the event the expert appears for testimony and the hearing is postponed without sufficient notice being provided, the expert may be compensated at the Court-approved or a reduced rate, as approved on a case-by-case basis by the judicial officer depending on the individual circumstances present. The expert should document the relevant circumstances in the invoice.
Testimony
The Court is required to pay for the testimony expenses of those experts who prepared the reports required by statute, but only when an expert is testifying in a hearing that the Court is required to conduct (AOC Opinion “Payment of Court-Ordered Forensic Examinations”, dated May 5, 2005). Fees for an expert who is called to testify in a hearing that the Court is not required to conduct shall be borne by the relevant party (e.g., prosecution or defense).
For more information, contact buyer@stanct.org.