01
Start with a source manifest
List each facility, provider, date range, document category, file, and pagination convention. Mark duplicates, illegible pages, and productions that appear incomplete.
The manifest gives counsel and the expert a shared definition of the record set and prevents a missing source from being mistaken for a documented absence.
02
Build orientation without pre-deciding the opinion
A provider map, focused chronology, and issue index help the expert locate pivotal events. The organizing material should preserve uncertainty and avoid language that assumes breach or causation.
- Defined event and review period
- Pivotal events with source citations
- Conflicting timestamps or histories
- Missing records and pending requests
- Questions matched to the expert's specialty
03
Send a clean question set
Questions should distinguish record completeness, clinical interpretation, standard of care, and causation. The expert can then identify which questions fall within the engagement and which require another specialty.
Critical Timeline's chronology and case-review services can prepare the record architecture without substituting for the retained expert's independent analysis.