One of the quickest and sometimes least expensive ways to find an expert is through a qualified referral service. There are quite a few referral services – look in the advertisement section of any legal journal.
But what are the costs to your client after you get the expert? Obviously you will pay for his time and expenses, but what hidden costs are there added? Every referral service has a charge, or they wouldn’t be in business. All, including MEC, get a return on what the expert is paid. That may be added to the experts’ fees or the expert may discount his fees by the amount of the fee he returns to the referring company. There are at least two services which add $50 or more dollars per hour to the fee charged by the expert and then pass on the billing to you, the requesting attorney. Your client ends up paying those costs.
Other referral services get 20% of the expert fees. The only one which receives less is MEC. We receive 10% of the experts fee and add an up front fee to the requester of $50 per referral.
MEC is run by a licensed attorney who personally conducts a pre-referral qualification interview of its Associates before recommending one.
MEC specializes in maritime experts. If you are looking for a marine expert and call one of the other services instead of MEC, ask them what they charge for their services (what percentage or dollar value) if they will tell you, and the qualifications of the person making the evaluation and the referral recommendation.
As a client, you have a right to know how much you are being charged above the expert fee.
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