A forensic medical opinion connects specialised knowledge with a defined question in a legal dispute. For a client or lawyer, a useful starting point is to identify the question, the relevant period and the material that can be reviewed. A request for an explanation is more informative than a request for a favourable conclusion.
Define the question before collecting an answer
Consider the difference between reviewing the reasoning in an existing report, describing a documented functional limitation and assessing a proposed causal explanation. Those tasks should be specified separately. Our suggested preparation is a short chronology, an inventory of available records and a list of the points that need clarification.
In Spanish civil proceedings, article 335 of the Civil Procedure Act addresses the use of specialised knowledge and the expert's duty of objectivity. Article 340 sets conditions concerning qualifications and expertise. These provisions concern that legal setting; they should not be presented as the rules for every jurisdiction. [1]
Distinguish information from interpretation
A practical way to read a report is to mark which statements identify source material, which describe observations and which express an interpretation. Ask where the reasoning moves from one level to the next. If an important document is unavailable, ask how that absence affects the scope of the answer.
For example, the existence of a dated report and the meaning assigned to its contents are different questions. This distinction is a reading aid, not a conclusion about a particular case. It helps the reader ask for an explanation without assuming that the report is either correct or incorrect.
Make the scope reviewable
Before instructing an expert, ask what material will be examined, whether any assessment is proposed, what the written product will cover and whether attendance at a hearing is included. These are matters to clarify in the engagement. They should be recorded in terms that both the client and the professional can understand.
For work involving more than one country, identify the jurisdiction and the intended use of the opinion from the beginning. Our pages on Miami and the United States and international forensic work describe the practice context. The applicable requirements must be established for the specific instruction.
Discuss a possible instruction
Contact Doctor Cuadrado with the type of matter, its current stage and the question you need to clarify. A preliminary enquiry allows the scope and feasibility of the work to be discussed before an instruction is accepted.
Reference: Spanish Civil Procedure Act, Law 1/2000, consolidated text consulted on 22 October 2026. This is an updated explanatory edition of the page at this historical address.