Class 2: Relevance; Prejudice, Confusion and/or Waste of Time - Jan. 11

Question 1

May a judge exclude otherwise-relevant evidence as a matter of discretion? (Q)

Answer 1

Yes. A judge may exclude otherwise-relevant evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by a danger of:

unfair prejudice,
confusing the issues,
misleading the jury,
undue delay,
wasting time, or
needlessly presenting cumulative evidence.

(FRE 403)

Question 2

Under what circumstances must a court exclude evidence unless its probative value substantially outweighs its prejudicial effects? (Q)

Answer 2

Courts are directed to exclude evidence unless its probative value substantially outweighs its prejudicial effects with respect to:

(1) evidence of a defendant’s prior felony conviction (FRE 404),

(2) evidence of a criminal conviction that is more than 10 years old (FRE 609),

(3) the otherwise-inadmissible basis of an expert’s opinion (FRE 702), or

(4) evidence of a victim’s sexual behavior or sexual predisposition in a civil case (FRE 412).

Question 3

What factors will a court consider in determining whether evidence is more prejudicial than probative? (Q)

Answer 3

Although there is no specific test for determining whether evidence is more prejudicial than probative, courts generally consider:

(1) the degree to which the evidence might arouse strong emotions or irrational prejudice in the jury,

(2) the nature of the evidence,

(3) whether the jury will misuse or overvalue the evidence,

(4) the probable effectiveness of a limiting instruction,

(5) the availability of other means of proof, and

(6) how central the evidence is to the case.

Question 4

What is unfair prejudice? (Q)

Answer 4

Unfair prejudice refers to the danger that certain evidence or arguments will induce the jury to decide a case on an improper basis.

Question 5

If a party seeks to introduce unfairly prejudicial evidence, what must the court consider as an alternative? (Q)

Answer 5

If a party seeks to introduce unfairly prejudicial evidence, the court must consider whether other, less prejudicial evidence would prove the same fact. In other words, the court must be open to whether there is some evidence that is less likely to prejudice the fact finder that would make the same point.

(FRE 403)

Question 6

What is prejudicial error? (Q)

Answer 6

Prejudicial error, also called reversible error, is error that adversely affects a substantial right of a party and warrants reversal of the judgment. Prejudicial error is error that is so significant that it undermines the confidence that the judgment would have been the same without the error.

Question 7

What did SCOTUS rule in Old Chief v. United States (1997)? (Q) (Merritt)

Answer 7

Evidence is not admissible if its unfairly prejudicial effect outweighs its probative value. Additionally, a party should only forced to accept an admission instead of offering live testimony if the probative value of the live testimony is extremely low. (Quiz)

Question 8

What does FRE 403 govern? (LII)

Answer 8

FRE 403 governs the balancing test for admitting evidence.

Question 9

Relevant evidence can be excluded if its probative value is SOUP. (Piper)

Answer 9

S – SUBSTANTIALLY
O – OUTWEIGHED by its
U – UNFAIR
P – PREJUDICIAL effect on the jury