Under Rule 703, when is an expert opinion admissible if the required facts would normally be inadmissible?

• A. The opinion may be admissible if the facts are those normally relied upon by experts in the field.
• B. The opinion may be admitted only if the facts are admissible regardless of usual reliance.
• C. The opinion may be admitted if the facts are those not relied upon by any expert.
• D. The opinion may be admitted only if the facts are disclosed and weigh against prejudice.

Answer: (A)

Under Rule 703, an expert can base an opinion on facts or data that the expert has learned about, even if those underlying facts would be inadmissible if offered as evidence. The key is that the information must be of the type that experts in the field reasonably rely on when forming opinions. This recognizes that specialists often consult data sources that aren’t themselves admissible to prove the facts, yet those sources are essential for reaching a conclusion. As long as the data are the sort commonly relied upon by professionals in the field, the expert’s opinion can be admitted to help the jury understand the expert’s reasoning, with the court still having discretion to limit or exclude the underlying data to address issues like prejudice.