Expert witness organisations are drawing experts’ urgent attention to an amendment to the Statement of Truth they must include in their reports. The 122nd update to the Practice Direction for the Civil Procedure Rules makes the new wording mandatory and came into effect from 1 October this year.
The new Statement of Truth that should be used reads: “I confirm that I have made clear which facts and matters referred to in this report are within my own knowledge and which are not. Those that are within my own knowledge I confirm to be true. The opinions I have expressed represent my true and complete professional opinions on the matters to which they refer.
“I understand that proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a Statement of Truth without an honest belief in its truth.”