Five Ways Psychological Insight Can Shape a Case
Dr. Ablow is retained by counsel, not parties, for consultation on the human dimensions of high-stakes matters. The work has its highest impact where psychiatric or psychological themes must be conveyed to a judge or jury, where strategy turns on the motivations of a plaintiff or defendant, and where a jury must be selected that will be fair to the client's unique circumstances.
Core Services
Narrative Architecture & Litigation Positioning
Developing psychologically coherent and strategically compelling frameworks for understanding and presenting complex disputes.
- Litigation narrative development
- Strategic case framing
- Theme identification
- Persuasion analysis
- Narrative vulnerability assessment
- Perception analysis
Assess Malpractice Issues in Psychiatry & Psychology Cases
Evaluating psychiatric and psychological care for the failures that most often give rise to malpractice liability.
- Risk of dangerousness to self/others
- Medication issues
- Appropriate level of care: inpatient v. outpatient
- Diagnostic accuracy
- Boundary issues
- Missed medical illnesses
- Substance abuse/overdose
Witness Psychology & Credibility Dynamics
Insight into how witnesses, executives, plaintiffs, defendants, and key stakeholders may be perceived.
- Credibility dynamics
- Behavioral presentation
- Executive positioning
- High-conflict personalities
- Emotional communication
- Interpersonal dynamics
Strategic Conflict Analysis
Examining the psychological dimensions of conflict that may influence litigation strategy, settlement, and decision-making.
- Settlement psychology
- Motivation analysis
- Escalation dynamics
- Reputation concerns
- Emotional leverage
- Leadership behavior under pressure
Reputation & Public Narrative Advisory
Strategic guidance regarding public perception and reputation-sensitive matters.
- Reputation risk assessment
- Media positioning
- Public narrative management
- Crisis communications strategy
- Stakeholder perception
- Messaging discipline
Litigation Narrative Audit
A confidential strategic review designed to identify opportunities and vulnerabilities before they surface in the courtroom or the public record.
- Case narrative
- Witness perception
- Credibility architecture
- Emotional resonance
- Reputational exposure
- Public-facing risks
Additional Consultation Areas
- Case Strategy Consultation
- Narrative Analysis
- Jury Perception & Human Behavior
- Damages & Emotional Injury
- High-Profile Litigation Support
- Jury Selection Consultation
- Reputation-Sensitive Matters
- Communications & Positioning
Five flags in a psychiatric expert's report.
Whether you represent the defendant or the plaintiff, an opposing psychiatric expert can usually be countered once a detailed assessment of the available records is conducted. These are the gaps Dr. Ablow looks for first.
An opposing expert's confidence is often the tell. The record, read closely, is the rebuttal.
Selectively dismissed testing
Testing that is missing, or that presents data supporting an opposing viewpoint, is quietly omitted from the report.
Missing collateral
Medical records, family reports, prior treatment, and deposition transcripts that would complicate the expert's conclusion are never reconciled against it.
Errors in treatment, unexamined
Inconsistencies in the care record that bear directly on credibility are noted in passing and then left unexplained.
Crucial questions never asked
Of the defendant, the injured party, or key witnesses, the questions whose answers would undermine the stated opinion are absent from the record.
Camouflaged motivation
Secondary gain, psychological leverage, or the dynamics driving the accusation or the testimony are never weighed against the conclusion.