Thursday, October 23, 2003

Fourth Circuit Affirms Exclusion of Testimony Linking Cell Phones with Cancer

The Fourth Circuit has affirmed a lower court decision excluding the testimony of an epidemiologist who posited a causal link between radiation from cellular telephones and malignant brain tumors. Acording to the court, the epidemiologist's report supported only a link with benign tumors, and failed to demonstrate a dose-response relationship. See Newman v. Motorola, Inc., No. 02-2424 (4th Cir. Oct. 22, 2003) (unpublished) (Widener, Michael, & Shedd, JJ.).

posted by pn at 10:02 PM  

Fed. R. Evid. 702: If scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education, may testify thereto in the form of an opinion or otherwise, if (1) the testimony is based upon sufficient facts or data, (2) the testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods, and (3) the witness has applied the principles and methods reliably to the facts of the case.