By MATT CHANDLER
mchandler@bizjournals.com | 716-541-1654

As millions of Americans tuned in last month to watch the acquittal of Florida mom Casey Anthony on charges she murdered her daughter, there was a nearly unanimous question on their minds: How did the jury reach the unthinkable verdict?

With Anthony declining to take the stand, her lawyers relied heavily on the testimony of expert witnesses to discredit the prosecution's case.

As the legal world becomes more technically specialized, the role of the expert witness in legal cases continues to grow. Gone are the days when a doctor might take the stand to testify about a possible cause of death. These days there are several doctors, all specialists in niche practice areas who can create a sliver of doubt in the minds of jurors and turn a case for one side.

In the Anthony case, it was a former chief medical examiner-turned-professional witness and a forensic anthropologist who may have helped free her. The question, then, is where does a lawyer turn to find someone so specialized that they can testify to the probability that duct tape was placed on a body not only post-mortem, but after the flesh had completely rotted away? The answer: expert witness finders such as Beth Bradbury.

She owns FindMeExperts.com, a business established in 2010 after she spent 12 years working for one of the largest expert operations in the country, eventually managing its expert witness department.

"I have a really specific skill set in terms of my ability to find hard-to-find experts," Bradbury said.

That - coupled with her desire to operate a more personal business model than the large, national companies - pushed her to start her own business.

"I had worked for a company that handled cases all of the country, as well as in Canada, Mexico and Europe, so I wanted to do something different," she said. "I knew if I started this business, I wanted to focus primarily on working with local attorneys in this area."

Focusing on local and regional clients isn't the only thing that sets Bradbury apart. She adopted a billing model that she says puts the emphasis on customer satisfaction, not the billable hour.

"I meet with the attorney to learn as much about the case as possible and then I do the research and find them usually a few options for their expert witness," she said. "Then I work with the attorney to make sure they are satisfied, and I get them an expert they are comfortable with."

Unlike some firms that charge by the hour, Bradbury works for no cash up-front. She said she is paid only if she finds a suitable expert witness for her client and the person is hired.

"Lots of things happen in cases where they might not go forward with an expert, and in those cases there is no cost the attorney," she said.

So what makes the perfect expert witness?

"I look for someone who has been a practitioner, who has taught and has published," she said. "I look at the associations they belong to and I always try to weed out anybody that looks like a professional expert witness."

If the idea of matching experts in obscure fields with attorneys who may or may not ever have a need for them sounds challenging - with your paycheck hanging in the balance - it is. But Bradbury said she loves her work.

"Every case is so different, and there are so many different types of experts, you couldn't even name every category," she said. "So it can be a challenging job, but it is also what makes it so interesting."

In a tough economic climate where law firms are cutting budgets and many businesses have tightened the proverbial belt, the toughest part of launching her company had nothing to do with dollars and cents.

"Starting a business like this in a place where everyone is so well-networked, it can be tough to break in," she said. "So much of this business is word-of-mouth from an attorney who is satisfied with your work, but it takes time to establish that."

She is making inroads and gradually building a stable of clients, and she sees Buffalo's strong legal community as a good setting for her specialty business. Her biggest competition lies in national online sites such as expert.com, she said. And that is where her local approach is paying off.

"You can go online and find anybody these days," she said. "But are they going to be a quality witness, and are they going to give you what you need in your case? That's where I think I have an advantage."

Visitwww.FindMeExperts.com or call 716-238-6173.