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Litigation Support and Expert Witness

The difficult assignments come to us. Most of our work is ordinary residential appraisal done carefully; a smaller part of it is the assignments that arrive because someone else's number is being challenged, or because the property is hard enough that the usual approach does not reach.

What we do for counsel

Appraisal review. Examining another appraiser's report and stating whether the methodology, comparable selection and adjustments support the conclusion. We have completed 391 field reviews — this is a category of work in its own right, not an occasional favour.

Retrospective valuation. Establishing value as of a past date — a date of death, a date of filing, a date of loss, a date of transfer — using only evidence available as of that date.

Expert testimony. Deposition and trial, where the assignment calls for it.

Second opinions before you file. Often the most useful thing we do. Knowing early that the opposing valuation is defensible is worth more than discovering it in a hearing.

Why the file matters more than the CV

An expert's opinion is only as strong as the record behind it. Ours is 34,000+ appraisals in Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie and Broward counties, and we have been appraising South Florida since 1992 — which is what makes a retrospective assignment possible at all. Valuing a property as of 2006 requires having worked that market in 2006.

The range matters as much as the depth. We have appraised dozens of properties over $10,000,000, and we have appraised one-bedroom condominiums. The reason to say so is not prestige: it is that unusual properties are where opposing valuations diverge most, and where an appraiser without comparable experience produces something that does not survive cross-examination.

Our staff includes an MAI and SRA designated appraiser.

What we will not do

We do not take assignments contingent on reaching a particular value, and we will not adjust a conclusion to suit the party paying for it. An appraiser who would do that is worthless to counsel — the opposing side's first question establishes it, and the opinion collapses.

If our analysis does not help your client, we will tell you before you have spent anything further on it.

Residential only. Call 561-853-2129 or use the contact form.

How the assignment runs

Conflict check first, then engagement through counsel stating the property, the date, the question and the posture — our opinion, a review of theirs, or both. Review work follows the field-review discipline: the other report's comparables re-verified, adjustments tested against the market, conclusions checked for support, findings stated without theatre. Where testimony is anticipated, the file is built for it from day one; nothing goes in the report that cannot be defended from the stand.

What we are in a case, and what we are not

We are the valuation evidence — independent, documented, and identical whichever side engaged us; that symmetry is why the opinion is worth anything under oath. We are not advocates, and an attorney shopping for a number will find this the wrong firm quickly. What counsel gets instead is early honesty: the other side's appraisal is sound, or it is not, and knowing which before deposition is worth more than any exhibit.

Questions we hear about this work

Do you review other appraisers' work?

Yes — 391 formal field reviews in the file. A review examines methodology, comparable selection and adjustments, and states whether the conclusion is supported.

Can you testify?

Yes, deposition and trial. The record behind the opinion — 34,510 assignments since 1998 — is what makes testimony hold.

Will you tell us if our case's valuation position is weak?

Before you spend money on it. A second opinion that says the other side's number is defensible is cheap insurance against building a case on sand.

What valuation dates can you work to?

Any date the matter requires — current, date of loss, date of filing, date of death — using only evidence available as of that date.