On September 10, 2009, the New York Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments in Salm v. Moses. The underlying Appellate Division, First Department doesn't have much to it. The appeal addresses whether the trial court properly limited the cross-examination the defendant's expert by precluding inquiry into the fact that he and the defendant were insureds and shareholders in the same dental malpractice insurance company. The Court of Appeals will likely address the standard that the First Department applied -- i.e., whether the trial court "achieved a fair balance between the plaintiff['s] right to attack the expert witness's credibility and the prejudicial effect of introducing the fact of [the defendant]'s insurance coverage".
New York Civil Law will keep you apprised on the decision.
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