Yvette Downey bought a children’s bedroom set from Bob’s Discount Furniture Holdings, Inc., in 2004. Soon, Downey and her daughter, Ashley Celester, began to ex-perience skin irritation. In July 2005, they discovered insects on Ashley’s body and in their home. Downey immediately called Allegiance Pest Control and spoke to Edward Gordinier, a licensed and experienced exterminator. Gordinier inspected Downey’s home that day. He found bedbugs throughout the house and identified Ashley’s bedroom set as the main source of the infestation. Downey informed Bob’s about the problem. Although Bob’s retrieved the bedroom set and refunded the purchase price, it refused to pay for the costs of extermination or any other damages. Downey and her daughter filed a lawsuit in a federal district court seeking compensation for health problems, emotional distress, and economic loss.
THE LEGAL ENVIRONMENT DIMENSION
Why can only an expert testify about the source of a bedbug infestation?
THE ETHICAL DIMENSION
It is fair to require plainttiffs who hire expert witnesses to pay for and submit written reports that specify what the experts will say at trial? Why or why not?