Kansas SB398 - Expert Witness Testimony Standards
Summary
Kansas Governor signed SB398 into law, establishing new standards for expert witness testimony. The bill requires proponents to demonstrate that specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact before qualified expert witnesses may testify. The legislation passed unanimously through both chambers of the Kansas Legislature.
What changed
Kansas enacted SB398, a law establishing heightened standards for expert witness testimony in state proceedings. The bill requires a proponent to demonstrate that specialized knowledge will more likely than not help the trier of fact understand the evidence before certain qualified witnesses may testify. This Daubert-type standard applies to expert witnesses in Kansas courts.
Legal professionals and parties engaging expert witnesses in Kansas litigation must now satisfy this threshold showing before expert testimony is permitted. Criminal defendants and civil litigants relying on expert testimony should review their case strategies and ensure experts meet the new qualification and helpfulness requirements. Failure to satisfy the demonstration requirement may result in exclusion of expert testimony.
What to do next
- Review current expert witness disclosure and selection practices for compliance with new standards
- Update litigation procedures to include required demonstrations of expert testimony helpfulness to the trier of fact
- Monitor for any implementing rules or court guidance interpreting the new expert witness standards
Source document (simplified)
ChangeBridge / Kansas / SB398 Signed by Governor SB398 Senate Bill Signed by Governor 2026-04-09
Requiring a proponent to demonstrate that it is more likely than not that certain specialized knowledge will help the trier of fact to understand evidence before certain qualified witnesses may testify.
Bill Details
State Kansas
Session 2025-2026 Regular Session
Chamber Senate
Official Source kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/sb398/
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Sponsors
Judiciary
Action History
2026-04-09 S Senate Enrolled and presented to Governor on Monday, March 30, 2026 2026-03-26 S Senate Concurred with amendments in conference; Yea: 39 Nay: 0 2026-03-23 H House Motion to accede adopted; Representative Humphries, Representative Williams, L. and Representative Osman appointed as conferees 2026-03-23 S Senate Nonconcurred with amendments; Conference Committee requested; appointed Senator Warren , Senator Titus and Senator Corson as conferees 2026-03-18 H House Emergency Final Action - Passed as amended; Yea: 124 Nay: 0 2026-03-18 H House Committee of the Whole - Be passed as amended 2026-03-18 H House Committee of the Whole - Committee Report be adopted 2026-03-12 H House Committee Report recommending bill be passed as amended by Committee on Judiciary 2026-03-03 H House Hearing: Tuesday, March 3, 2026, 3:30 PM Room 582-N 2026-02-19 H House Referred to Committee on Judiciary 2026-02-19 H House Received and Introduced 2026-02-18 S Senate Emergency Final Action - Passed; Yea: 40 Nay: 0 2026-02-18 S Senate Committee of the Whole - Be passed 2026-02-10 S Senate Committee Report recommending bill be passed by Committee on Judiciary 2026-02-05 S Senate Hearing: Thursday, February 5, 2026, 10:30 AM Room 346-S 2026-01-28 S Senate Referred to Committee on Judiciary 2026-01-27 S Senate Introduced
Votes
2026-02-18 Senate Emergency Final Action - Passed - Yea: 40 Nay: 0 Yea: 40 Nay: 0 2026-03-18 House Emergency Final Action - Passed as amended - Yea: 124 Nay: 0 Yea: 124 Nay: 0 2026-03-26 Senate Concurred with amendments in conference - Yea: 39 Nay: 0 Yea: 39 Nay: 0
Committee Referrals
2026-01-28 S Judiciary 2026-02-19 H Judiciary
Amendments
2026-02-10 Senate Committee on Judiciary Report 2026-03-12 House Committee on Judiciary Report
Bill Text Versions
2026-01-27 Introduced 0000-00-00 Amended 2026-04-09 Enrolled Legislative data powered by LegiScan (CC BY 4.0)
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