Our Forensic Psychiatric Consulting Services

The Defense Base Act (DBA) is a federal workers’ compensation program designed for contractors working on U.S. military bases or under U.S. government contracts. Contractors with physical or psychological injuries related to their employment may be entitled to receive benefits. Our experts can assess claimants based on federal standards for DBA claims and render opinions regarding diagnosis and treatment recommendations.

Workers’ compensation claims have evolved over time. Our experts can opine on physical-mental, mental-physical, and mental-mental injury claims. Although jurisdictions have nuanced differences, establishing a causal nexus (or lack thereof) between the workplace incident and reported injuries is typically a central focus in workers’ compensation cases. Our experts are additionally familiar with federal programs, such as the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act and its extensions (e.g., the Defense Base Act).

Current or former employees may allege wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED), and/or other claims. We can offer opinions regarding employees’ reported emotional reactions and assess for psychiatric diagnoses. We can also provide short-term and long-term treatment recommendations, as appropriate.

Forensic psychiatrists routinely consult on psychiatric standards of care. ThNK Consultants’ experts have extensive experience in cases involving completed suicides, psychiatric boundary violations, and improper prescribing, among other issues. Psychiatric damages can also be relevant in medical malpractice cases related to treatment by other medical disciplines. In those instances, our experts can assess psychiatric harm claims.

Although maritime claims typically involve questions commonly encountered during domestic case work, there are rules specific to maritime law that differ from those of the U.S. legal system. ThNK Consultants’ experts are experienced with maritime law and have consulted on cases in admiralty court.

With an established group of psychiatric expert witnesses around the country, ThNK Consultants can efficiently assess large groups of claimants in one or more regions. Claimants with shared potentially traumatic events can have varied experiences and responses to the same event, with vastly different long-term impact. We can help stratify claimants based on severity of their psychiatric diagnoses and/or symptoms, evaluate causation, and assess pre-existing, intervening, and other factors related to prognosis.

ThNK Consultants can efficiently assess claimants for the impact of similar experiences or exposures on each individual. We can help stratify claimants based on severity of their psychiatric diagnoses and/or symptoms, evaluate causation, and assess pre-existing, intervening, and other factors related to prognosis.

Personal injury lawsuits often involve claims related to emotional or psychiatric damages, requiring specialized assessment. These claims may involve economic damages (e.g., mental health treatment costs), non-economic or general damages (e.g., pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium/impact on relationships), and/or punitive damages (e.g., intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED) or reckless disregard for mental wellbeing). ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatry experts are experienced in conducting evaluations for psychiatric or emotional damages and can provide an analysis of causation, pre-existing conditions, the type and severity of emotional injuries (and related impairment), and prognosis for recovery. 

Questions involving the impact of traumatic experiences (e.g., single incident or chronic exposure) commonly arise during civil litigation. Our forensic psychiatrists have extensive experience assessing PTSD in both clinical and forensic settings and can provide opinions supported by accepted diagnostic standards and the medical literature.

Product liability law holds manufacturers, distributors, and sellers responsible for injuries or damages caused by defective products, allowing consumers to seek compensation for injuries sustained from unsafe goods or products. ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatrists have assessed numerous plaintiffs for potential mental health harms reportedly related to products manufactured by a variety of industries (e.g., pharmaceutical, utilities, media and technology). Many of these cases have involved multi-district litigation (MDL). ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatrists are comfortable with and experienced in addressing mental health concerns in such complex litigation situations.

Damages can occur because of substandard conditions or inappropriate staff conduct at residential and correctional settings. Those damages may necessitate immediate or long-term treatment needs. ThNK Consultants’ experts can assess the potential impact on evaluees of substandard conditions at correctional or residential settings.

Workplace harassment claims often involve allegations of sexual harassment. For example, questions involving the nature and impact of relationships between supervisors/supervisees and/or coworkers often arise in such claims. In addition, claims of hostile work environment is often at issue in workplace sexual harassment litigation. Our experts can assess for psychiatric diagnoses and treatment needs of claimants alleging damages related to sexual harassment.

Questions related to reported psychiatric symptoms and long-term prognosis of individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI) are common in civil litigation. ThNK Consultants can review records and assess claimants in order to opine on diagnosis/es and anticipated damages. Our forensic psychiatrists are also comfortable working with experts from other fields, such as neuropsychology, neurology, and orthopedics.

The question of whether an individual had the capacity to execute/establish or alter their Will or Trust can be raised by concerned or unsatisfied parties. In such cases, ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatrists review documentation to render retrospective opinions regarding testamentary capacity and/or undue influence.

Forensic psychiatrists conduct assessments during the guilt phase, sentencing phase, and appellate process of capital cases. ThNK Consultants’ experts have experience consulting during all phases of capital cases regarding common questions involving psychiatric diagnosis, mitigation, criminal responsibility, and future violence risk.

Adjudicative competence is the most common question addressed by forensic psychiatrists in criminal cases. ThNK Consultants’ experts have extensive experience assessing questions involving trial competence, competence to proceed pro se, and competence to waive Miranda rights, among other specific questions. 

Most states and the U.S. federal system have legislation pertaining to criminal defendants who lacked the requisite mental state to commit a particular crime because of a psychiatric disorder and/or symptoms. Most current U.S. standards are based on the M’Naghten Rule or a variant thereof. Diminished capacity is an additional consideration in some jurisdictions. Our experts have extensive experience assessing criminal responsibility, including not guilty by reason of insanity (NGRI), guilty but mentally ill (GBMI), and diminished capacity or actuality defenses.

Triers of fact commonly consider mitigating factors during sentencing hearings. Psychiatric diagnoses, including substance use disorders and personality disorders, can be mitigating (or sometimes aggravating) factors based on elements of a defendant’s history. ThNK Consultants’ experts can assess defendants to provide opinions or consult with attorneys related to sentencing hearings.

Questions frequently arise post-adjudication regarding appropriate placement, monitoring, and treatment. ThNK Consultants’ experts can provide comprehensive reviews of an individual’s legal and psychiatric history to answer questions related to mental health regarding appropriate post-adjudication dispositions.

Several questions can arise during criminal cases involving alleged sexual offenses. Common questions involve the defendant’s sexual interests and likelihood of reoffending. Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) laws exist in several jurisdictions. Many statutes mandate a structured assessment by a mental health professional to opine on sexual recidivism risk. ThNK Consultants’ experts are experienced in conducting sexual recidivism risk assessments, which can include administering structured instruments.

Violence risk assessments (VRA) can be relevant during criminal trials. Additionally, threat assessment often relies upon forensic mental health expertise to analyze behaviors as part of an overall threat prevention, mitigation, and management plan. ThNK Consultants’ experts can work with law enforcement, attorneys, or other entities to answer violence risk questions and provide mental health expertise related to threat assessment concerns.

Reports of child sexual abuse (CSA) often give rise to criminal or civil complaints. Civil complaints may involve parties that have a presumptive duty to protect or supervise minors (e.g., schools, religious institutions, psychiatric inpatient units, residential treatment facilities, detention facilities, etc.). These claims are more complicated to evaluate when individuals have pre-existing mental health symptoms and/or diagnoses, or when significant time has passed since the alleged event(s). In these cases, ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatrists review records and evaluate the claimant with reported sexual abuse in order to assess for psychiatric diagnoses, causation (or lack thereof), recommended treatment, and prognosis.

Children frequently witness events that may give rise to criminal complaints or civil causes of action. The accuracy of children’s recollection of events can be impacted by a variety of factors, including leading interview techniques by insufficiently trained interviewers and other social factors. ThNK Consultants’ child & adolescent forensic psychiatrists have significant experience evaluating child witness reliability. This may include reviewing videos or transcripts of interviews and other collateral records and/or evaluating children to opine as to their accuracy and reliability in reporting events. 

When youth under age 18 are charged with serious crimes, their cases can be transferred from juvenile court to adult criminal court, where they face significantly greater legal jeopardy (e.g., much lengthier sentences, serving time in adult correctional facilities). ThNK Consultants’ experts evaluate youth to determine, from a mental health perspective, the appropriateness of transferring their case to adult criminal court. Often, a youth’s amenability to treatment is an important factor considered, and we can assist in these evaluations.

Litigation can arise when individuals experience adverse events from psychiatric medications. Claims are more likely if a plaintiff believes that an insufficient informed consent process occurred. Youth can be more susceptible to medication side effects than adults, and adverse events can potentially occur more frequently. Additionally, the informed consent process with minors is more complicated than that with adults, and psychiatric medications are prescribed in an “off-label” (though potentially appropriate) fashion much more commonly. ThNK Consultants’ child & adolescent forensic psychiatrists frequently evaluate the appropriateness of prescribing specific medications or particular types of medications in youth, the sufficiency of the informed consent process in prescribing such medications, and the appropriateness of using psychiatric medications in an “off-label” fashion in youth.

Juvenile detention facilities are a unique setting in which mental health care is provided to youth. Consequently, the standard of care (SOC) for provision of these services is also somewhat unique, and established by a variety of means (e.g., institutional policies, state and federal licensing authorities, and/or organizational practice parameters). Therefore, it is crucial to utilize forensic psychiatrists with experience working in and/or supervising others working in these settings in malpractice or other litigation related to the standard of care provided. ThNK Consultants’ experts have decades of collective experience related to provision of psychiatric care to youth in juvenile justice settings and are familiar with the mental health SOC in such settings.

As questions arise during the pre-litigation period and litigation process, ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatrists can assist in the selection of the most appropriate and qualified mental health expert witnesses for the particular circumstances of the case, vetting these expert witnesses’ credentials, and evaluating opposing experts’ opinions. ThNK Consultants can also utilize its collective behavioral health expertise to provide input on additional trial-related matters, such as translating complex and often technical mental health information into a succinct and understandable presentation. ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatrists are seasoned educators and can give presentations to attorneys, making specialized knowledge and questions understandable and relevant to litigation.

Testamentary capacity assessments are traditionally requested when attorneys or other involved parties have concerns regarding the testator’s mental capacity. However, memorializing decision making contemporaneously can be an effective tool in reducing future legal challenges to a Will or Trust. In addition to more traditional, retrospective analyses of testamentary capacity, ThNK Consultants offers proactive forensic psychiatric evaluations for individuals engaged in estate planning. These evaluations document testamentary capacity to ensure that each client’s wishes are accurately reflected, protected, and defensible.

In addition to this service, ThNK Consultants offers contemporaneous assessments to opine on a testator’s or trustor’s capacity at the time of execution/establishment or alteration of the Will or Trust.

In some cases, an individual may deliberately harm another individual under their care related to a variety of psychological factors. These acts may be performed by a caregiver on minors, disabled adults, or patients under the care of a medical provider. The impact of these behaviors can be highly detrimental to victims. ThNK Consultants’ experts can assess allegations of Factitious Disorder and opine regarding the alleged behaviors and long-term ramifications on the victims.

Questions central to fitness for duty (FFD) assessments involve an employee’s ability to perform essential job functions. The risk of “direct threat” at the workplace is another common question in FFD assessments, as are questions related to risk prevention, mitigation, and management. FFD assessments are typically circumscribed and address questions specific to an individual employee’s situation. In conducting FFD assessments, ThNK Consultants’ experts utilize a standardized process for informed consent and reporting, in line with accepted practices.

Concerns regarding potential malingering or dissimulation of symptoms routinely arise during litigation. ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatrists are well versed in assessing for feigning of psychiatric symptoms through both detailed forensic interviewing and administration of structured instruments.

Allegations of sexual and other misconduct by professionals, including boundary violations, can have significant mental health impacts on both accused professionals and alleged victims depending on the specific circumstances of the case. In some instances, provision of treatment recommendations for one or both parties may be necessary. ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatrists can render expert opinions in such matters. 

A single problematic employee can create substantial HR problems for businesses. Executive and other hires often represent a multi-million-dollar investment and/or have lengthy contracts which can significantly impact the future prospects of a business. ThNK Consultants’ forensic psychiatrists can provide input into job candidates, assessing for the presence of behavioral patterns and interpersonal styles that are more likely to create problems or alternatively be beneficial in a particular workplace.

Professionals may come to the attention of professional boards (e.g., state medical boards, bar associations, etc.) for a variety of reasons. Common scenarios involve concerns regarding mental health conditions, erratic behavior, substance use, or allegations of unethical conduct. Consulting on such cases may involve providing recommendations for treatment and/or monitoring. In other instances, professionals require formal “clearance” to return to work in their chosen field after receiving treatment for a particular mental health concern. ThNK Consultants can work with attorneys and/or professional boards to address questions and provide formal recommendations.