Why are they considered experts?

We often forget that scholars are just human beings who happen to be experts in their fields. Why are they considered experts?

Like any position they are considered the experts because they have put in time, effort and through action have shown that they are sincere about the pursuit of truth. For me the character of a Scholar is far more important than what he actually knows. The reason is that I know an individual who has proven to have the best of character is going to be as honest as possible in his approach to learning and sharing knowledge.

Scholar is not synonymous with perfect.
They make mistakes and May Allah reward them for them because of their sincerity.

Side Note: this does not mean we blindly follow the mistake. This means that if they make a mistake we reject it and take what is correct.