In Multnomah County Public Library et al., vs. United States of America, et al. (an ACLU challenge to the Children’s Internet Protection Act), I prepared an expert report, then was offered as an expert for oral testimony. Counsel for the United States of America challenged my credentials, remarking on my youth and lack of a relevant degree. The United States’ challenge was overruled.
The voir dire challenge of my designation as an expert:
Q Mr. Edelman, the highest academic degree that currently hold is a high school diploma, isn’t that correct?
A That’s correct.
Q The undergraduate degree that you expect to receive in June of this year is the only undergraduate degree that you will hold when you receive it, isn’t that right?
A That’s correct.
Q And that undergraduate degree that you have yet to receive that you will receive in June of 2002 will be in economics, is that correct?
A I will in June of 2002 receive a undergraduate degree in economics, that’s correct.
Q And you will not receive any degree in computer sciences, is that correct?
A That’s correct.
Q You don’t belong to any professional associations currently, is that right?
A That’s correct.
Q And you currently hold no professional licenses, is that correct?
A That’s correct.
Q You have not published any articles in any scholarly journals, is that correct?
A That’s correct.
Q And you have not published any peer reviewed articles of any kind is that correct?
A That’s correct.
JUDGE BARTLE: He may have no peers.
Q You testified that you spent nine years doing consulting for various organizations, is that right?
A Yes.
Q And you began that consulting while you were still in junior high school, isn’t that right?
A That’s correct.
Q You currently other than the teaching responsibilities that you have at Harvard College you don’t hold as formal teaching appointment, do you?
A I do not.
Q You also testified that you previously given testimony in Federal Court, is that right?
A Yes.
Q On one occasion you testified before an Federal District Court, is that correct?
A That’s correct.
Q You were not deposed for purposes of that testimony were you?
A I was not.
BHATTACHARYYA: I render my objection, Your Honors, to the qualifications of this witness as an expert under the Federal Rules of Evidence.
Remarks by the three-judge panel in qualifying me as an expert:
JUDGE BECKER: Well, I would observe that some of the great figures in history have been autodidacts … could spend a half a morning listening to all of the autodidacts.
[Rule] 702 says that it’s scientific technical or otherwise specialized knowledge, assist in the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue. In other words the helpfulness standard. A witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training or education may testify thereto in the form of an opinion. That’s the applicable standard.
I know how I’m prepared to rule. Judge Fullam?
JUDGE FULLAM: I have two reasons for ruling the same way. One is that we waited just so we could hear this witness, and I think that would be a terrible waste.
The other is that I happen to on occasion rely upon my six year old grandchild for advice on the internet and computer.
JUDGE BECKER: Okay. Ms. Bhattacharyya, your objection is overruled. Mr. Edelman is qualified to give expert testimony.