Law_of_Evidence_in_Kenya

Experts are brought by the parties who wish to rely on their experience and skill. The party who
wishes to call the expert should inform the court of the expertise of the person they want to rely
on and give a brief of the area of expertise.
The expert has to be ascertained by being asked leading questions to determine;
i
ii
The witnesses‟ educational background which includes looking at the certificates and
ascertaining the credibility of the certificates. The court also checks where the expert
studied.
The work experience of the expert as their competence is measured by their working
duration.
An expert witness should first testify on the facts in order to lay the foundation before he can be
allowed to express his opinion. They should be ready to justify their opinion by argument and
demonstration 69 . In R v Kupikandimu and 3 others 70 a medical expert gave evidence stating in
a deposition that certain injuries described by him were inflicted before death. He gave no
reasons for the opinion. It was held that opinion evidence was inadmissible as to the cause of
death.
For one to be relied on as an expert, he/she has to be qualified. In the case of Mohammed
Ahmed v R 71 , the appellant had been convicted of occupying an unsafe house. Opinion by the
district housing inspector and the superintendent of works said that the house was so unsafe to
constitute nuisance. The Court of Appeal held that the two were unqualified and their evidence
was inadmissible.
Keen interest in a subject matter can lead to one having knowledge through experience, hence be
regarded as an expert. This was shown in the case of R v Silverlock 72 where the court accepted
the evidence of a solicitor on handwriting as expert evidence because he had keen interest in the
subject though he was unschooled in the subject matter.
69 Onyango v R (1969) EA 362
70 (1946) 72 L.R 90
71 (1957)EA 323
72 (1894) 2QB 766