Trial Process Flashcards
When a judge rules against a party regarding the admissibility of her evidence in a motion in limine, to preserve the issue for appeal, the party:
party’s lawyer must approach the judge outside the hearing of the jury to get a final ruling and put the matter in the record for the appellate court by an offer of proof or bill of exceptions. If the motion is denied, the party must object when the matter comes up during trial.
A witness may be impeached by a criminal conviction only if:
was a felony or involved a moral turpitude and the probative value outweighs the prejudicial effect
What crimes are inadmissible evidence?
- conviction pending on appeal
- person has been pardoned (rehabilitation or probation) and no more crimes
- person pardoned because of innocence
T/F: There is unlimited cross-examination.
Yes, but it must be relevant to some issue in the case or to credibility.
Texas requires a party to lay a foundation before cross-examining a witness about any oral or written prior inconsistent statement or introducing extrinsic evidence. What must be done?
Tell the witness
(i) the contents of the statement
(ii) time and place of statement
(iii) who the witness made the statement to
*Witness must have time to explain or deny the statement.
What is the dead man’s rule?
This excludes testimony of a party as to an oral statement by the decedent or incompetent offered against another party. Exceptions: when the decedent/incompetent’s statement is corroborated OR witness is called at trial by an opposing party to testify as to the oral statement.
It can only be raised by an executor, heir, or other protected party.
T/F: Texas eliminated the general hearsay exception found in the federal rules, called the catch-all exception.
True.
