Engineers Working In The Legal Field: Could This Be A Option For You?

Litigation and expert witness work are rarely, if ever, presented as part of an engineer's formal academic training. Despite the fact that many professional engineers are working in the legal field, the demand for engineering support in legal matters continues to grow. Engineers often play key roles in legal proceedings such as hearings and trials as they provide scientific and technical analyses and opinions used by lawyers and the court to make decisions and rulings. Such high-profile cases that have relied heavily on scientific and engineering support include "BP Deep Horizon Oil Spill" and the "Flint Water Crisis." This seminar will present an overview of litigation and expert witness work as it applies to the field of engineering. The topics to be discussed include fundamental legal concepts, how engineers are engaged in legal matters, options for engineers interested in working in the legal field, and what it takes to be an expert witness.

Bio

Jennifer is a principal engineer with Geosyntec Consultants in Chicago. She has been working in the field of environmental research and consulting for over 20 years. She completed her undergraduate studies at Northwestern University in Chemical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering and then traveled to California for graduate school at UCLA, where she received her Master's in Chemical Engineering and a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering. Jennifer's work spans various disciplines, including contaminated site characterization and remediation, environmental chemistry and forensics, and litigation support. She also serves as an adjunct professor at IIT.