Chapter 9 Flashcards
What are the rules of evidence
These are the rules that govern the admissibility of evidence in a legal proceeding
Who ultimately decides what evidence is admitted in court
The judge
What is evidence
evidence is testimony, writings, and material proof of a fact or proposition
What is real evidence
rela evidence is anything other than oral evidence - its tangible
What is direct evidence
Direct evidence is evidence that directly proves a fact at issue - woke up and in the night see it is raining
What is circumstantial evidence
This is evidence that a fact is proven indirectly - wake in the morning and the yard is wet - so you say it rained last night
To be admissible in court evidence must be . . .
relevant. If it is not relevant its not admissible in court
Evidence is relevant if is has any tendency to make the existence any fact that is of consequence more probable, less probable than without it
What is the general rule of admissibility
all relevant evidence is admissible except as otherwise provided by the law
Even if the evidence is relevant when might it NOT be admissible
If its probative value is substantially outweighed - confuse the issue,or listed the jury
When is an expert needed
Not for common knowledge
What is circumstantial evidence and the difference be teen direct
Direct - this is direct testimony on facts to be proved ( I saw what happened) circumstantial - does not prove it directly, but instead is part of a chain of inferences - circumstantial
What kind of testimony is a expert witness
direct evidence
Inflamatory evidence
This is evidence that shows maybe immoral character. This may bias the jury to think the defendant is a bad person that is irrelevant to the case. You don’t want to include it because it will bias the jury. INADMISSIBLE
Can you include evidence of good or bad character
evidence of good or bad behaviors in general is INADMISSIBLE unless character is the issue
Is evidence of herb admissible
evidence of habitability may be ADMISSIBLE especially when it tends to be repeated ro nearly invariable
Are these inadmissible: offers of compromise, settlement, plea bargaining, solo contender
All of these please are INADMISSIBLE
Liability Insurance
ADMISSIBLE in court - to prove liability
Who has privileged communications:
attorney- client
doctor-patient
priest-penitent
What is the work product rule
This says that the work that is prepared by the attorney join behalf of the client in prep does not have to be disclosed - it is protected of privileged
What about accountants
They do NOT have privilege but if you prepare work under the direction of their attorney - then your work is covered by the work paper product rule
Able each page as such
discovery and expert witness versus a consultant
In general an expert witnesses documents are discoverable and a consultants documents are not discoverable
Is hearsay admissible
In general the are NOT ADMISSIBLE - because considered untrustworthy but there are executions
What are the hearsay exceptions
Legally operative facts - whether you made a statement - you gave notice of a breach of warranty
Effect in the listener - some said “Joe is a thief” is why you direct Joe, but does not prove that he is a thief
State of mind of the declarant - someone says “ Mike is a crook” proves why you might not have gone into an oral business agreement with them but does not prove they are a crook
Impeachment - prior staten made by a decrement may be offered to impeach the declarant.
What are the three concepts underlying the EXCEPTIONS to hearsay
trustworthiness - an excited utterance is considered more trustworthy
Unavailability of declarant - they can’t testify at trial
Practical considerations -
What is the authentication requirement
This means that in order for evidence to be admissible as evidence of legal proceedings a document etc but be authenticated or identified as what is proponents claim it to be.
What is the best evidence rule
To prove the contents - the original must be produced rather than secondary evidence. unless lost or destroyed
What is demonstrative evidence
Items that illustrated testimony, but has no probative value - start - diagrams, chalks - must have value
to be admissible
What is the residuum rule
No finding may be solely supported by hearsay evidence.
What is Benfords law
Used to detect invented numbers -
30% chance the first number will be 1 2 = 17%
on 4.6% chance that it will be 9
What is electronic imaging
process of scanning documents onto a magnetic medium
