Expert Testimony in a Federal Condemnation Case
Business Law Articles
By Paul R. Yagelski, Esq.
Rothman Gordon
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
When is an Expert's Testimony Admissible in a Federal Condemnation Case?
In UGI Sunberry LLC v. A Permanent Easement for 1.7575 Acres, 949 F.3d 825 (3rd Cir. 2020), the United States Third Circuit Court of Appeals addressed the question of what the standard is for the admissibility of expert testimony in a condemnation proceeding under the Natural Gas Act. 15 U.S.C. § 717, et seq. The Court held that Federal Evidence Rule 702 supplies the answer and requires reliable expert testimony that fits the proceedings. This standard recognizes that "[t]he more tightly law is bound to good science, the more orderly and predictable the legal process will become." UGI Sunberry LLC, 949 F.3d at 829 (citing Peter W. Huber, Galileo's Revenge: Junk Science in the Courtroom, 215 (1991)). The Court found that the expert testimony presented by the landowners in the case was bound only to speculation and conjecture, not good science or other "good grounds." Accordingly, the Third Circuit vacated the award that the District Court made in favor of the landowners and remanded the cases for new valuation proceedings.