Many things can happen during the course of a personal injury trial in Mississippi. If you are injured in a Mississippi car accident, such as an SUV rollover accident, and file a personal injury lawsuit, then you may hear a legal term used called a “motion in limine.” A motion in limine is a motion that can be brought by either side in the case to keep evidence from being presented to the jury. If the judge agrees that certain evidence be excluded from the jury, then that kind of evidence cannot be talked about in front of the jury or even read by the jury for that matter. The case of Ash v. Ford Motor Co., (N.D. Miss., May 30, 2009) 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102327 is an example of a situation where the exclusion of damaging evidence can significantly affect an SUV roll-over case.
In this case, the injury victim asked the court to exclude the defendant’s expert witness testimony regarding rollover accident statistics, which compromised the SUV rollover victim’s case. The court of appeals ruled that the defense attorney or his expert witness could not use statistics because this type of evidence could mislead or confuse the jury as offered by the defendant.
Another defense trick in the Ash case was to use an expert witness who relied upon an undisclosed investigator’s evidence, including photographs. The problem for the defense was that they did not identify the identity or background of the investigator so the court for the most part agreed that such evidence should not be relied upon by a defense expert because the injury victim’s attorneys were not given the opportunity to cross-examine the undisclosed investigator.
The trial of a personal injury case, like an SUV rollover accident lawsuit, can be extremely complicated including the application of sophisticated court procedures and complex evidentiary rules. An experienced Mississippi SUV rollover accident attorney understands the importance of particular evidence and when it is important to seek exclusion of such evidence because it will give the attorneys for the insurance company an unfair advantage.
The two basic principles of excluding evidence in a Mississippi personal injury trial illustrated in the Ash case are that evidence cannot confuse or mislead the jury and that you cannot use an undisclosed “mystery” witness at trial. This also would violate the Constitutional right to cross-examine the witness, which is why the Ash case ruling makes sense from a legal standpoint.
Our Mississippi SUV rollover accident attorneys at the Barrett Law, PLLC will help demystify the legal process and seek the compensation that you need to rebuild your life. If you have been involved in a serious SUV rollover accident, you should contact the Mississippi SUV rollover accident attorneys at Barrett Law, PLLC so that we can evaluate your case and advise you of your rights and options. Our firm has been helping motor vehicle accident victims in Mississippi for over 75 years so call us today at (662) 834-2376. No Recovery No Fee!
