Medical Record Review Expert Witnesses: 108

James Apesos, MD, FACS, is Board Certified in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, General Surgery, and Hand Surgery, allowing him to deal with most any and all potential medical malpractice situations.

Dr. Apesos has decades of experience operating a busy private plastic surgery practice, training surgeons, managing emergency rooms, and hospital facilities. He has a wide experience dealing with both pediatric and adult surgery from congenital to reconstructive to cosmetic.

Education / Training:

• University of Pennsylvania, BS 
• Georgetown University School of Medicine, MD
• Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, General Surgery Chief Resident
• University of Virginia School of Medicine Chief Resident Plastic Surgery
• Certified Ohio State Police Officer 
• Certified Ohio State Firefighter

Litigation Support - Dr. Apesos is an expert witness for Medical Malpractice cases involving Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, including all cosmetic surgery, pediatric surgery, hand surgery, burn surgery, breast surgery, and cancer surgery. He has special skill in complications of surgery and post-surgery deaths.

Dr. Apesos has been providing services to the legal community for 30 years. He has been retained in 30 cases and been deposed over 25 times. A punctual strategist, he is adept at quickly assessing legal cases, cutting through medical jargon, and determining the merits of each case. Dr. Apesos' services include medical record review, thorough reporting, depositions, and trial testimony as needed for both plaintiff and defendant.

Areas of Expertise:

James H. Reich, MD, MPH, is a board-certified Forensic Psychiatrist with extensive civil psychiatry experience who has done hundreds of evaluations.

After getting his MD from the University of Colorado Medical Center in Denver, Dr. Reich earned his MPH at Yale University and did his psychiatric residency at UC Davis. Dr. Reich has held academic positions at Yale, Iowa, Harvard, and Brown Universities.  Currently, he has teaching appointments at the professor level at both UCSF and Stanford University. Throughout his career, he has published over a hundred peer-reviewed publications. 

Litigation Support - Dr. Reich’s services are available for civil and some criminal law cases. Clients are assured of his personal dedication to each case. He does high quality research, expert evaluations, writes a solid report, and will testify well. Dr. Reich has been deposed over 50 times.

Areas of Expertise:

Presentations - As faculty at the Stanford Forensic Fellowship program, Dr. Reich has given two talks to the group. On October 27, 2023, he presented, "What Gets Psychiatrists and other Medical Professionals into Problems with the Law or Regulators." On January 19, 2024, he presented a talk on Psychiatric Disability to the same group. Dr. Reich is also supervising a fellow on his project on competency issues in older physicians.

Jeffrey A. Sugar, MD has been a practicing Psychiatrist for over 20 years. Dr. Sugar is board certified both in Child and General Psychiatry. He is Past President of the Southern California Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Dr. Sugar  is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at USC, and has been an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at UCLA. Dr. Sugar is the Director of the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Trauma Program at the University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles, CA where he sees patients, teaches psychiatry, and performs research. He is Attending Psychiatrist in both Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Adult Psychiatry Outpatient Clinics at USC. He teaches child and general psychiatrists-in-training and medical students on topics ranging from Trauma, Adversity, and Dissociation to Psychotherapy theory and methods.

Dr. Sugar was the founding director of the Hathaway Children’s Clinical Research Institute where he performed funded research on the effects of interpersonal child trauma. Dr. Sugar has presented at national and international meetings on child and adolescent Trauma and Dissociation. Director, Child Psychiatry Trauma Program at the University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine .. Dr. Sugar has been worked with the legal industry since 1988. Qualified in Superior court, he has been retained over 40 times as an expert in a broad range of child and general psychiatric cases, for both Plaintiff and Defense. His services include:

• Consultation Regarding Psychiatric Injury, Diagnosis, Treatment
• Record Review and Opinion
• Psychiatric Interview and Mental Status Evaluation
• Expert testimony

Dr. Sugar's litigation support is available to attorneys for both Plaintiff and Defense. His Areas of Expertise include:

Professional Training:

• MD: University of California, San Francisco
• General Psychiatry: Harbor-UCLA, Torrance, California
• Child Psychiatry: UCLA-Neuropsychiatric Institute
• Chief Fellow: UCLA

View Dr. Sugar's Consulting Profile.

Joseph W. Burke, MD, board certified, actively participating Diagnostic Radiologist with over 18 years of experience. Dr. Burke has practiced for the last 16 years at Reading Health system which has one of the busiest Emergency Departments on the East Coast and is a Level 2 Trauma Center.

Dr. Burke is a frequent presenter at weekly Tumor, Trauma, Thoracic, and Gastrointestinal Conferences. He served as Chief of the Ultrasound department for several years and currently sits on his group Board of Directors. He offers teaching services, educating radiology technology students, medical students, and residents.

Litigation Support - Dr. Burke provided Medical-Legal forensic case review for attorneys in numerous cases. He has extensive experience in the interpretation of Neurologic and Body Imaging studies and has read in excess of 250,000 images including MRIs, X-Rays, CT Scans, and ultrasounds. Dr. Burke's services are available to counsel representing plaintiff and defendant and include medical record review, written reports, deposition, arbitration, and trial testimony as needed.

Radiology and Diagnostic Radiology Areas of Expertise:

Current Memberships and Affiliations:

• American Medical Association
• Pennsylvania Medical Society
• American College of Radiology
• Radiological Society of North America
• Eastern Radiological Society
• Pennsylvania Radiological Society

Kevin Kucko, MAPT, ATC is a licensed Physical Therapist with over 23 years of experience. His specialty areas include Work-injury Reduction, Outpatient Services Development, and Physical Rehabilitation. 

Background Experience - Mr. Kucko began his career as an athletic trainer working with athletes from college through the NFL. He quickly focused on accelerating recovery times while rehabilitating orthopedic injuries. In 1995, he completed his Masters’ degree in Physical Therapy. Since that time, he has served as Department Director at various rehabilitation facilities throughout the east. 

Litigation Support - With over 13 years of experience performing Functional Capacity Evaluations, Mr. Kucko has helped hundreds of clients resolve cases with the best possible outcome. He provides services to attorneys representing both Plaintiff and Defense. Kevin Kucko offers meticulous review of medical records in preparation for trial and depositions. For cases where therapy and physical rehabilitation are involved, he sets the foundation by explaining medical conditions and interventions in a clear and concise manner that jurors understand. Mr. Kucko has been deposed and/or testified 14 times since 2010. 

Areas of Expertise:

Joel L. Kent, MD, is an expert in all realms of Pain Medicine and has focused expertise in the prescribing and oversight of opioid analgesics. His specialties include acute and chronic pain management, opioid analgesics, interventional pain management therapies, spinal cord stimulation, intrathecal drug delivery, RSD/CRPS and low back pain.

Dr. Kent has provided expert case reviews and testimony for over twenty years.  The majority of his expert work has focused on the standard of care in the practice of Pain Medicine and the use of opioid analgesics.  Dr. Kent has provided expert case opinions in Federal and State civil courts.  He has provided defense support to the US Department of Justice in two cases.  He has served as an expert witness and case reviewer for both Maryland and New York State.  Dr. Kent assisted the District Attorney of New Jersey in prosecuting a case of unlawful prescribing of controlled substances.  He has provided expert case review and litigation support to health insurance carriers seeking restitution for fraudulent expenses related to opioid therapy.  

Over the course of his career, Dr. Kent has developed particular expertise surrounding the use of opioid analgesics.  He has provided over 50 lectures to other physicians regarding the safe and proper use of these medications.   He has been recognized as an expert in both State and Federal Court in cases related to opioid therapy.  He has served on advisory boards helping craft regulatory policies related to opioid medication.  All these accomplishments attest to Dr. Kent’s high level of expertise in the complex and evolving realm of opioid therapy. 

Primary area of expertise: Pain Medicine

Expert consulting experience:

• Authored over 50 expert case reports
• Participated in over 25 depositions
• Testimony experience in civil trials and professional hearings
• Provides litigation support and expert testimony in plaintiff and defense cases

Professional experience:

• Over 25 years of experience in Pain Medicine
• Triple Board Certified
• Practice Director of University Multi-Disciplinary Pain Management Practices from 1998 to 2017
• Program Director of a Multi-Disciplinary Pain Management Fellowship Training Programs from 1998 to 2015
• Professor of Anesthesiology, Palliative Care, and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at University of Rochester School of Medicine
• Lectures extensively and published 

Sajid R. Khan, MD, is a board-certified Emergency Medicine physician with over 15 years of experience working in a variety of settings from inner-city level 1 trauma centers serving 100,000 patients per year to 3-bed rural Eds. Dr. Khan has served as a Medical Director, Oral Boards Examiner, and member of the Honor Council. He is ACLS (Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support), ATLS (Advanced Trauma Life Support), and PALS (Pediatric Advanced Life Support) certified. Dr. Khan is a member of AOA (the only national medical honor society in the world) and served as an Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

A published author, Dr. Khan has written a number of books including, The Ultimate Emergency Medicine Guide, a comprehensive review book that is the highest-rated and most up-to-date text for Emergency Medicine physicians preparing to certify.

Litigation Support - Dr. Khan offers expert witness services to attorneys representing plaintiff and defendant. Licensed in Kansas, Missouri, Georgia, and Texas, he complies with the ACEP Expert Witness Guidelines and will provide an honest and unbiased opinion on Emergency Medicine Medical Malpractice and Negligence cases. Dr. Khan is available for consultation, chart review, and expert testimony.

Areas of Expertise:

Howard M. Kipen MD, MPH, is Board certified in Internal Medicine and Occupational Medicine. Dr. Kipen earned a BA from UC Berkeley, MD from UCSF, and MPH from Columbia University. He currently serves as Director of the Clinical Research and Occupational Medicine Division and Professor of Environmental and Occupational Health at Rutgers University. Dr. Kipen’s research focuses on clinical and epidemiological studies of the health effects of Indoor and Ambient Air Pollution. His research uses both controlled exposure models with ozone, fresh aerosols, and diesel-enriched on-road exposures, primarily with drives on the New Jersey Turnpike. A new EPA study examines health benefits of portable air cleaners for reducing indoor air pollution levels. Biomarker outcomes presently emphasized are exhaled breath oxidative stress and invasive and noninvasive measures of vascular function. Dr. Kipen has published morethan 200 articles on environmental / occupational health. Scholarly Activities:

• Former Chair, NASA Human Research Program’s Advanced Environmental Health / Advanced Food Technology Standing Review Panel
• Member, National Academies Standing Committee on Medical and Epidemiological Aspects of Air Pollution on U.S. Government Employees and their Families, 2016
• Chair / Member Multiple Ad Hoc Grant Review Panels (e.g., NIEHS, Department of Defense)
• Governor’s Appointee, Public Employee’s Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, New Jersey Department of Labor
• Member, Public Health Scientific Advisory Board, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

Litigation Support: Dr. Kipen has 35 years of litigation experience. He has expertise in various Toxic Torts including asbestos, benzene, mold, air pollution, occupational and environmental cancers, and other diseases. He also has expertise on "Multiple Chemical Sensitivities" (MCS). Dr. Kipen has particular experience as an asbestos plaintiff's expert and both plaintiff and defense experience with other toxic torts. His services include medical record review, thorough reporting, depositions, and trial testimony as needed.

Tom LeTourneau, LPO, CPO, FAAOP, has over 45 years of experience in the Design, Manufacture, and Fitting of Orthotic and Prosthetic Devices, including all Myoelectric applications and all Microprocessors.  He is a Certified Orthotist and Prosthetist by the American Board of Certification of Orthotist and Prosthetists and Fellow of the American Academy of Orthotist and Prosthetists.

Litigation Support - Mr. LeTourneau has over 20 years of experience  providing Orthotics and Prosthetics expert opinions to life care planning care management personnel and law firms for both plaintiff and defendant. Licensed Prosthetist and Orthotist by the state of Texas, he is available for record review, thorough reporting, depositions, and trial testimony as needed.

Areas of Expertise:

Memberships, Certifications, & Highlights:

• Member of the Upper Extremity and Lower Extremity scientific society of the American Academy of Orthotists and Prosthetists
• Member of the American Association of Orthist and ProsthetistsCertification extensions in all myoelectric upper extremity Orthotics and Prosthetics, Micro-processor prosthetic Knee and feet applications, and X-finger applications
• Inventor / and or co-designer in Te-Evolution Above the Knee socket design, Stealth Ankle foot orthosis, " No more knee pain " Knee orthosis, acti-ankle
• CEO and Founder of a Multi-million dollar ( licensed and certified ) Orthotic and Prosthetic company
• Featured in articles and news organizations ( local and National )including CNN, NBC., CBS, the History Channel, and family circle magazine
• Awarded Freedom award for exceptional service for veterans ( only 35 companies nationwide receive an award )

John L. Lovecchio, MD, has over 35 years of experience specializing in Gynecology and Oncology.  He is one of the nation’s top clinicians and researchers in the field of uterine and ovarian cancers.

Dr. Lovecchio is currently Professor Emeritus of Gynecologic Oncology and Gynecology at Hofstra University School of Medicine, NY, and Attending Physician in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at North Shore University Hospital, Manhasset, NY. 

Prior to that, for 20 years, Dr. Lovecchio served as Professor and Chief of Gynecologic Oncology and Gynecology in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at North Shore University Hospital-Long Island Jewish Medical Center (Northwell Health) while also working as an Investigator at the Center for Oncology & Cell Biology at the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research.

Litigation Support - Dr. Lovecchio offers expert witness services to attorneys representing the plaintiff and defense, including medical record review, thorough reporting, depositions, and trial testimony as needed. He has been deposed and testified over 10 times since 2020.

Areas of Expertise:

Harriet Jacobster, AuD, is an ASHA Certified Doctor of Audiology with almost 40 years of experience, as well as a Certified Health Coach, Certified Master Trainer and Functional Aging Specialist. She is knowledgeable in diagnostics and cognitive disorders focusing on Tinnitus, Hearing Loss, Balance, and Military Noise Exposure.

Litigation Support - Dr. Jacobster serves as an Expert WItness for cases involving Hearing Damage and Loss. Her services are available to attorneys representing plaintiff and defendant and include medical, occupational, and audiology test review, thorough reporting, DMEs, depositions, and trial testimony as needed. Dr. Jacobster is also an expert witness and disability consultant for various veterans and legal organizations Cases have included 3M Earplugs as well as private cases involving motor vehicle accidents.

Areas of Expertise:

Background Experience - Dr. Jacobster has decades of experience providing comprehensive hearing tests, tinnitus assessment and treatment, hearing aid services, hearing protection services, and Military Noise Exposure.

To show her dedication to promoting professional standards, Dr. Jacobster served on the  Membership and Professional Compliance Committees of the American Academy of Audiology. She's also served on the faculties of several colleges both in the United States and abroad, and on staff of several hospitals. 

An accomplished musician, Dr. Jacobster has served on various Boards of DIrectors including the Adult Musicians with Hearing Loss. She was a nominee to the Board of Governors of the American Board of Audiology and was co-chair of the Fundraising Committee for the Association of Medical Professionals with Hearing Loss.  She works closely with the American Tinnitus Association as a counselor to raise awareness and bring hope to people with tinnitus and their families and was chosen as the Guest Healthcare Professional for the Summer, 2015 edition of Tinnitus Today, the publication of the ATA.

Victor L. Mandoff, BSc, MBBS, is a Board-Certified fully practicing Professor of Anesthesiology at a teaching hospital. With 17 years of experience in Anesthesiology and 10 years in Critical Care Medicine, his training keeps him current in the knowledge and practice of Evidence Based Medicine (EBM). Evidence Based Medicine is the integration of individual clinical expertise with the best available research evidence from systematic research and the patient's values and expectations.

UAMS Medical Center provides care to the highest acuity patients from the state and surrounding areas. It is the only level-one trauma center in Arkansas and the only one that does liver transplantations. Dr. Mandoff provides anesthesia for a variety of cases like liver transplants, kidney transplants, vascular surgery, thoracic, obstetric, neurosurgical, ENT, outpatient, GI, radiology, Cath Lab, Electroconvulsive therapy, etc. 

Litigation Support - Dr. Mandoff offers expert witness services to attorneys for plaintiff and defendant. Services include medical record review, thorough reporting, depositions, and trial testimony.

Areas of Expertise:

Dr. Mandoff is the director of MOCA Simulation for Anesthesiologists, the Assistant Medical Director of the Simulation Center, and the Director of Liver Transplant Team and Transplant Anesthesia at the University of Arkansas for Medical Science. He is an award-winning educator who feels privileged to teach medical students, nurses, residents, SRNAs and junior faculty, and other faculty using simulation training. Dr. Mandoff has won many teaching awards, including “Golden Apple Award,” “Red Sash Award,” and  “Educational Excellence Award,” presented by residents, students, and the College of Medicine.

Dr. Mandoff is a Fellow of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (FASA). The FASA designation is the “highest acknowledgment that recognizes years of dedication to exceptional education, leadership, and commitment to the specialty” as per the American Society of Anesthesiologists website. He is also Critical Care Fellowship trained at the Cleveland Clinic Medical Foundation, Critical Care Board Certified, and practiced Critical Care Medicine from 2006 to about 2016.

An Oral Board Examiner for the American Board of Anesthesiology, Dr. Mandoff has been named in Arkansas Times Best Doctors in Arkansas list in both Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine.

Chinemerem Y. Ugorji, MD, is a board certified Internal Medicine doctor with over 10 years of experience as a Hospitalist and Nocturnist. She has knowledge  of Critical Access Care, Level 2 Trauma, and Telemedicine.

Litigation Support - Dr. Ugorji's mission is to provide accurate expert assessments of Medical Billing / Coding, Medical Fraud, and Medical Necessities. She helps attorneys for plaintiff and defense make informed decisions about their cases. Dr. Ugorji's services include medical record review, thorough reporting, interrogatories, depositions, and trial testimony as needed.

Areas of Expertise:

William Santoro, MD is board certified in Addiction Medicine and board eligible in Family Medicine. He is the Chief of the Section of Addiction Medicine at Tower Health and was the Medical Director at the Reading Hospital & Medical Center detoxification/rehabilitation program. Dr. Santoro was also the Medical Director at a Methadone Treatment center  for 22 years, until 2021, where he is responsible for prescribing methadone to approximately 950 opiate dependent patients.

Dr. Santoro is the Addictionist on staff at The Reading Hospital & Medical Center within the Department of Family and Community Medicine. He is consulted by hospitalists to care for patients admitted to the hospital with addiction complicating their condition. Dr. Santoro runs an outpatient program treating over the 300 patients with buprenorphine (Suboxone/Sublocade) or Vivitrol maintenance. With an interest in Sports Medicine in 2001, he served as a volunteer physician for the U.S. Olympic Training Team in Lake Placid, New York.

Dr. Santoro has been deposed more than a dozen times in the past several years. He has testified in court numerous times on behalf of the plaintiff as well as for the defense. He has testified in Federal Court and been involved in cases concerning the pharmaceutical industry.

Areas of Expertise:

• All aspects of Addiction Medicine
• Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT)
  • Buprenorphine
  • Naltrexone
  • Methadone
• Dual Diagnosis Pain/Addiction

View Dr. Santoro's Consulting Profile.

Paul J. Michaels, MD, is a nationally renowned Anatomical and Clinical Pathologist with over 20 years of experience in his field. Dr. Michaels completed his medical residency and earned a Fellowship in Cytopathology from Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School.

Litigation Support - Dr. Michaels offers expert witness services to attorneys representing plaintiff and defense. He has written over 100 general causation reports focusing on pathology and providing an extensive differential diagnosis in order to provide an opinion with a reasonable degree of medical certainty. Dr. Michaels has participated in numerous MDLs, been deposed over 60 times, and testified in court 6 times.

Areas of Expertise:

Background Experience - Dr. Michaels is currently a member of a 10-pathologist group that operates the largest and most comprehensive anatomic pathology services laboratory within Central and Coastal Oregon. He is one of two pathologists responsible for covering Bay Area Hospital, the largest hospital on the Oregon Coast, which serves as a regional referral center.

Dr. Michaels' roles at Bay Area Hospital include: Chairman of Pathology; Member of the Hospital Medical Executive Committee; Medical Director for Transfusion Medicine, Hematology, and Cytopathology; Member of the Cancer Committee; and Member of the Trauma Committee.

At Southern Coos Hospital and Medical Center, Dr. Michaels serves as Laboratory Medical Director where his Anatomic Pathology responsibilities include frozen sections, gross evaluation and sign-out of complex surgical specimens, review of numerous outpatient biopsies, GYN and NON-GYN cytology, presentation at tumor board conferences, and performing hospital autopsies. Clinical pathology responsibilities include peripheral blood smear and body fluid review, crystal identification, and evaluation of blood transfusion reactions.

Speaking Engagements and Presentations - Dr. Michaels has delivered seminars and presentations in Canada, Japan, and throughout the United States. Topics have included cytopathology, breast cancer, acute cellular rejection, and many more.