Bevins v. Becker County, Minnesota
- Nancy Brasel
- 0:16-cv-04340
- U.S. District Court · District of Minnesota
- 2
In Bevins v. Becker County, Minnesota, Judge Thorson denied Corey Bevins’s request for a court-appointed medical expert.
Corey Bevins, whose request for appointment of a medical expert was denied.
What happened
In Bevins v. Becker County, Minnesota, Corey Bevins asked the court to appoint a medical expert because he could not afford to hire one or find one to review his medical records.
The court explained that Rule 706 of the Federal Rules of Evidence allows a court to appoint a neutral expert, but does not generally provide an expert to help one party litigate claims. The court found no extraordinary circumstances requiring an appointment here.
The court denied the motion. The order was signed by Magistrate Judge Becky R. Thorson.
The detailed version
- Bevins v. Becker County, Minnesota · No. 0:16-cv-04340
- Nancy Brasel
- Aug. 2, 2018
Background
Corey Bevins moved under Rule 706 of the Federal Rules of Evidence for appointment of a medical expert. He said he could not afford to hire an expert and had been unable to find one to review his medical records.
Court’s reasoning
The court stated that a party is not entitled to affirmative assistance from the court in litigating claims. It explained that Rule 706 permits appointment of a neutral expert and does not contemplate appointing or paying an expert to assist only one party. The court acknowledged that it may appoint a neutral expert in compelling circumstances, but found that those circumstances were not present.
Disposition
The court denied Bevins’s Motion to Obtain Medical Expert, Doc. No. 172. The order was signed by United States Magistrate Judge Becky R. Thorson.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.