About Emotional Damages: Practical Insights into Forensic Psychiatry for Litigating Attorneys
In Emotional Damages, host and forensic expert Dr. Mark Levy sits down with forensic colleagues, shedding light on their journeys and experiences. Through this podcast, he aims to demystify forensic psychiatry and share practical insights that can aid attorneys in their engagement with forensic experts.
AI, Psychosis, and the Law: Dr. Reema Dedania on the Emerging Frontier of AI-Related Litigation
In this episode of Emotional Damages, Dr. Mark Levy speaks with Dr. Reema Dedania, forensic psychiatrist, assistant professor of psychiatry at Emory University School of Medicine, and associate training director of Emory's forensic psychiatry fellowship — where she also serves as medical director of a jail-based competency restoration unit at Fulton County Jail.
Dr. Dedania explains how large language models — by design pattern-matching, connection-making, and sycophantic — can mirror and amplify the very cognitive distortions that define psychosis, giving rise to the emerging phenomenon of AI-associated psychosis. She describes the "paranoid echo chamber" that AI creates for vulnerable users, walks through the two major categories of AI-related litigation already appearing in courts (suicide and product liability cases), and offers concrete guidance to attorneys on how to approach these cases: accounting for preexisting psychiatric vulnerability, reading chat logs as collateral rather than literal evidence, and understanding causation as a spectrum rather than a simple cause-and-effect chain.
She also shares findings from her own firsthand experiment engaging a chatbot as a paranoid patient — and what the bot's response revealed about the limits of current AI safeguards.
15 Jul 2026
From Toxic Torts to a Gas Line Explosion: How Trial Attorney Michael Fox Builds a Forensic Expert Team
In this episode of Emotional Damages, Dr. Mark Levy speaks with Michael L. Fox, managing partner of Duane Morris' San Francisco office and co-chair of the firm's Products Liability and Toxic Torts Division, whose three-decade career spans toxic tort litigation, mass disaster cases, and complex commercial disputes. Fox traces his path from a Wharton finance student diverted by a legal history course into a litigator who built his practice around the "hourglass" theory of career development — starting broad, specializing deeply, then broadening again as expertise compounds. He and Levy revisit the multi-plaintiff gas line explosion case that first brought them together, using it to unpack how forensic psychiatric experts help separate genuine psychiatric injury from "copycat" or "echo chamber" claims, why the eggshell plaintiff rule makes individual vulnerability assessment essential, and how a bell curve of injury severity (rather than a "barbell" of only the most extreme verdicts) should inform case valuation and settlement strategy. Fox also explains why he deliberately seeks forensically trained experts over treating clinicians, offers concrete advice for expert witnesses on avoiding "canned" testimony, and shares his read on the next wave of mass litigation: digital harm and social media addiction claims among adolescents, and whether the underlying psychiatric science is developed enough to survive Daubert scrutiny.
6 May 2026
Forming Evidence-Based Expert Opinions with Dr. Charles Scott
In this episode of Emotional Damages, Dr. Mark Levy speaks with Dr. Charles Scott—triple‑board‑certified in adult, child & adolescent, and forensic psychiatry; past president of AAPL; creator of the UC Davis forensic psychiatry fellowship; and a leading educator and expert in high‑profile cases, including the Parkland school shooter sentencing. Dr. Scott discusses how he trains fellows to think like forensic “psychopathologists,” marshal evidence, integrate structured psychological and malingering tests, and build opinions that withstand cross‑examination in insanity, competency, brain injury, and child trauma cases. He also shares lessons from serving on a criminal jury himself, his ethical reasoning in capital cases, and practical guidance for attorneys on what records and data they should always obtain.
10 Apr 2026
Sorting Signal from Noise — Dr. Joy Stankowski on Open-Minded Evaluation, Records, and System-Level Care
In the Season 2 premiere of Emotional Damages, host Dr. Mark Levy speaks with Dr. Joy Stankowski, a dual-trained internal medicine and psychiatry forensic psychiatrist with over 20 years of experience, more than 1,000 evaluations, and deep expertise in hospital systems and standards of care. Dr. Stankowski explains how her medical-psychiatric background informs high-stakes criminal and emotional damages evaluations, why experts must approach records with an open mind, and communicate early and candidly with counsel when opinions diverge from case theories. She also discusses her work as a federal surveyor for CMS and offers attorneys a practical roadmap for collaborating with forensic experts, organizing records, and analyzing system-level problems in standard of care litigation.
3 Dec 2025
Decoding the Criminal Mind: Neuroscience, Psychopathy, and Court Strategies with Dr. Michelle Ward
This episode of Emotional Damages features Dr. Mark Levy, fpamed Medical Director and forensic psychiatrist, in conversation with Dr. Michelle Ward—psychologist, neuroscientist, and acclaimed crime documentary and podcast host. Dr. Ward shares her pioneering research on psychopathy, the biological and environmental roots of violent offending, and the evolving science of predicting predatory behavior. From her groundbreaking MRI studies on murderers to her consulting work on high-profile criminal trials, Dr. Ward offers lawyers and forensic professionals a rare insider’s perspective on where cutting-edge brain science meets the real world of criminal litigation.
5 Nov 2025
Evaluating Psychiatric Symptoms in Complex Cases: Dr. Ashley VanDercar on Assessing for Malingering and Violence Risk
In this episode of Emotional Damages, Dr. Ambarin Faizi sits down with Dr. Ashley VanDercar, fpamed forensic psychiatry associate, to explore how experts assess two of the most complex and high-stakes issues in forensic psychiatry: malingering and violence risk. Together, they explore the intricacies of malingering assessments and the importance of comprehensive record reviews. Dr. VanDercar then provides nuanced insights into violence risk factors, particularly in the context of severe mental illness. The episode concludes with practical advice for attorneys on effective collaboration with forensic psychiatric experts, emphasizing the synergy between legal context and psychiatric evaluation.
24 Sept 2025
Paraphilic Disorders and SVP Evaluations: A Forensic Psychiatrist’s View
In this episode, Dr. Ambarin Faizi is joined by Dr. Brian Holoyda, Chief Psychiatrist for Contra Costa County’s detention facilities and an internationally recognized expert on paraphilic disorders and sexual violence risk assessment. The conversation guides attorneys through the complexities of forensic assessments in sexually violent predator (SVP) cases, paraphilic disorder diagnosis, and the pivotal role of standardized risk assessment tools.
3 Sept 2025
From Playground to Courtroom: How Childhood Trauma Shapes Legal Outcomes
In this episode of Emotional Damages, host Dr. Ambarin Faizi sits down with Dr. Paul Elizondo, a triple board-certified psychiatrist in General, Child & Adolescent, and Forensic Psychiatry. Dr. Elizondo breaks down how trauma manifests differently depending on age and developmental stage, how preexisting conditions (like ADHD or learning disorders) can shape recovery, and why careful forensic interviewing is essential to maintaining reliability.
30 May 2025
Traumatic Brain Injury in Court: What Forensic Experts Look For
Dr. Shafi Lodhi and Dr. Howard Friedman discuss the complexities of traumatic brain injury in litigation, offering insights into what forensic experts look for in court, in an interview with Dr. Ambarin Faizi.
30 Apr 2025
The Truth Is in the Testing: Dr. Howard Friedman on Assessing the Mind in Litigation
In this episode of Emotional Damages, Dr. Ambarin Faizi welcomes Dr. Howard Friedman, board-certified neuropsychologist and clinical psychologist with over 12,000 evaluations to his name. Together, they explore the role of psychological and neuropsychological testing in litigation, from emotional injuries to cognitive impairments.
10 Apr 2025
PTSD in the Courtroom: What Attorneys Need to Know
In this episode of Emotional Damages, Dr. Ambarin Faizi speaks with Dr. James Armontrout, forensic psychiatrist and Program Director of the Stanford Forensic Psychiatry Fellowship. Drawing on his extensive experience treating veterans with PTSD and conducting over hundreds of forensic evaluations, Dr. Armontrout offers attorneys an in-depth look at how trauma unfolds, how PTSD is diagnosed, and what distinguishes reliable psychiatric assessments in litigation.
In this episode of Emotional Damages, Dr. Ambarin Faizi is joined by Dr. Ayesha Ashai, a board-certified forensic psychiatrist, as she shares personal experiences that led her to the field, her encounters with criminal and civil forensic evaluations, including a memorable insanity defense case. She addresses the complexities of psychopathy, cultural psychiatry, and the disparities in mental health care, particularly within correctional settings.
5 Mar 2025
Forensic Psychiatry in Probate Litigation: Assessing Testamentary Capacity and Undue Influence
How do courts determine whether someone had the mental capacity to sign a will or whether they were manipulated into making estate decisions? In this episode of Emotional Damages, host Dr. Ambarin Faizi sits down with forensic psychiatrist Dr. Mark Levy and estate litigation attorney Dewey Harpainter to explore the complexities of testamentary capacity and undue influence in estate disputes.
19 Feb 2025
Autism in Civil and Criminal Litigation: Forensic Insights on Diagnosis and Defense
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) presents unique challenges in both clinical and forensic settings. In this episode, host Dr. Ambarin Faizi sits down with Dr. Bryna Siegel, an autism expert, researcher, and forensic consultant, to break down the complexities in legal cases involving ASD.
5 Feb 2025
Childhood Sexual Abuse: Legal and Psychiatric Perspectives
Dr. Ambarin Faizi is joined by two esteemed guests: Dr. Charles Saldanha, Co-Medical Director of fpamed and a forensic psychiatrist with over 20 years of experience, and Attorney Jon Daggett, Managing Partner at Hiroshima & Daggett Law Firm. Together, they explore the complex intersection of psychiatry and law in cases involving adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse.
22 Jan 2025
Behind Bars: An Expert’s Perspective on the Realities of Providing Psychiatric Care in Jails
In this episode of Emotional Damages: Practical Insights into Forensic Psychiatry for Litigating Attorneys, Dr. Ambarin Faizi speaks with Dr. Charles Saldanha, fpamed Co-Medical Director and a seasoned forensic psychiatrist, about the unique challenges and rewards of delivering psychiatric care within the correctional system.
8 Jan 2025
Forensic Psychiatrists: What Role Do They Play in Court?
In the pilot episode of 'Emotional Damages: Practical Insights into Forensic Psychiatry for Litigating Attorneys,' Dr. Ambarin Faizi, alongside the esteemed Dr. Mark Levy, discusses the integral role of forensic psychiatric experts in the legal system, highlighting the differences between treating and forensic psychiatrists.
18 Dec 2024
Emotional Damages: Season 1 Trailer
Welcome to Emotional Damages: Practical Insights into Forensic Psychiatry for Litigating Attorneys, brought to you by fpamed. In this trailer, host Dr. Ambarin Faizi, a double board-certified forensic psychiatrist, introduces the podcast and shares her journey into forensic psychiatry and sets the stage for a valuable resource that bridges the gap between forensic psychiatry and legal practice.
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Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
3 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
4 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 24 / 100
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YouTube
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Engagement
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