Miller v. Silver

In Miller v. Silver (1986) 181 Cal. App. 3d 652, a medical doctor who specialized in psychiatry was allowed to testify as to the standard of care appropriate for a plastic surgeon's administration of antibiotic therapy. The Miller court qualified its holding by adding it would not hesitate to find that the psychiatrist lacked the credentials to permit him to give expert testimony concerning the surgical technique of plastic surgeons. However, appropriate antibiotic therapy was within the common knowledge of every physician and surgeon by virtue of his or her medical education and internship training, and any perceived problems with qualifications could be brought out on cross-examination at trial. ( Miller v. Silver, supra, 181 Cal. App. 3d at pp. 660-661.)