As a historian of US climate politics, I spend a lot of time documenting the activities and views of a large network of historical actors who sought to assess and respond to the hazards of climate change. Part of that work involves thinking about environmental law, so I was eager to review William Haggard’s book Weather in the Courtroom: Memoirs from a Career in Forensic Meteorology. A former director of NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center, Haggard started the Climatological Consulting Corp in 1976 and has served for decades as a professional forensic meteorologist. Weather in the Courtroom is an informative account of 12 court cases in which he was called as an expert witness.

Perhaps the most thought-provoking court cases Haggard discusses involve the delicate issue of whether a hazardous weather event constitutes, legally speaking, an “act of God.” Meeting that standard means that a weather event was so unprecedented, unforeseeable, and overwhelming that it erased human error as legally relevant to an accident or disaster. In a nutshell: Could defendants have anticipated the factors that led to a given weather-related hazard and implemented procedures or safeguards to mitigate damages? Predictably, defendants often claim acts of God to absolve themselves of legal responsibility. Less predictable is how such tactics are translated into debates about, for example, the likelihood that a given bridge or roadway can withstand a 50- or 500-year storm. In those terms, guilt becomes a matter of defining risk, and the chaos that usually accompanies a disaster is boiled down to charts, statistics, and graphs.

Credibility is another interesting issue that Haggard explores in his book. What makes a good forensic meteorologist? How do trained meteorologists convince a jury and a judge that they are credible authorities on past meteorological conditions? Three factors were fundamental to Haggard’s success, at least according to his account. First, he, his wife Martina Haggard, and his staff produced accessible and visual representations of atmospheric conditions, and they made sure the presentations were directly relevant to the case. Second, while on the stand, Haggard succeeded in convincing the jury that the data themselves were officially certified by relevant government agencies, which itself is a curious but underdeveloped side story of forensic meteorology. Third, and perhaps most importantly, Haggard was certified by the American Meteorological Society through a process that established his “high ethical standards and technical competence.”

Haggard’s consulting work certainly leads to interesting questions about the role of meteorologists in contemporary society. But one of the drawbacks of his book is the cursory attention he pays to the business or competitive side of the forensic meteorology profession. The author occasionally alludes to the slow growth of his business, which is primarily based on word of mouth. He graciously acknowledges the artistic talents of his wife and the work of other colleagues who assisted him as he expanded his business during the 1980s and 1990s.

Even so, the reader is left with little understanding of the challenges and hurdles Haggard faced as he sought to bridge the gap between science and business. Indeed, he writes in his conclusion that being a forensic meteorologist was “exciting, challenging, and filled with the fun of meteorological detective work.” But what were the challenges? Did he have competition? What it meant to him to develop a career in forensic meteorology, and to presumably have competed with others who were equally committed to developing a career, remains relatively opaque.

Ultimately, Haggard has produced a volume that gives us valuable insight into forensic meteorology in the courtroom—both how it operates in practice and the legal issues it confronts. However, much remains to be discussed about the profession of forensic meteorology outside the courtroom, including not only the business side but also the historical forces that have created and sustained the field. Hopefully, Haggard’s book will inspire others to explore this fascinating field from new angles.

Gabriel Henderson is an associate historian at the American Institute of Physics in College Park, Maryland, and a former postdoctoral researcher at the Centre for Science Studies at Aarhus University in Denmark. He is currently revising a book manuscript that examines the evolution of post–World War II US climate and environmental politics during the 1960s and 1970s and how such developments influenced the scope and nature of climate policy during the Carter administration.