The Judge and The Historian

Ramses Delafontaine

Historians as Expert Witnesses Ramses Delafontaine

Terry Parssinen

Terry Parssinen

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Parssinen has published Secret Passions, Secret Remedies: Narcotic Drugs and British Society, 1820-1930,and Webs of Smoke: Smugglers, Warlords, Spies and the History of the International Drug Trade. Using memoirs and recently discovered documents, Parssinen has published the first-ever book on the little-known plot that collapsed following the Munich conference of 1938: The Oster Conspiracy of 1938: The Unknown Story of the Military Plot to Kill Hitler and Avert World War II.

In a deposition taken for Sulcer v. R.J. Reynolds in September 2010 Parssinen declared that he charged $135 an hour for his research on tobacco-related issues. He furthermore stated that he had made around $360,000 with litigation-driven work for the tobacco companies.[1] One year later, in a deposition pertaining to McCray v. R.J. Reynolds Parssinen disclosed he had made $450,000 as an expert judicial witness for the tobacco industry.[2] The following year Parssinen acknowledged in an expert report submitted in Rodehaver v. R.J. Reynolds that his hourly rate for research was $135, and that for testimony $200.[3]

 

[1] See deposition of Terry Parssinen, September 8, 2010, Sulcer v. R.J. Reynolds. Westlaw reference: 2010 WL 9926701.

[2] See deposition of Terry Parssinen, September 26, 2011, McCray v. R.J. Reynolds. Westlaw reference: 2011 WL 8741848.

[3] See expert report of Terry Parssinen, June 21, 2012, Rodehaver v. R.J. Reynolds. Westlaw reference: 2012 WL 3541162.