Actuarial tables (also called life expectancy tables, mortality tables,and life tables) are statistical tools used by companies, scientists, courts, and government agencies to predict the life expectancy of a person by their age, gender, and...
evidence
(LIIBULLETIN preview (pre-2014))
[Question Presented]
[Issue(s)]
[Facts]
[Discussion]
[Analysis]
Issue(s)
Should the Supreme Court overrule Harris v. United States and require that a jury find facts beyond a reasonable doubt in order to enhance a sentence beyond the ordinarily...
(Wex page)
The ancient document rule is one of the methods available to authenticate evidence for trial under the Federal Rules of Evidence.
Under the rule, if a document is (1) more than 20 years old; (2) is regular on its face with...
(Wex page)
In regards to contracts or other documents, authentication means to sign or to execute the document.
Authentication commonly refers to providing sufficient evidence for a reasonable juror to conclude that the evidence a...
(Wex page)
Avowal is a declaration made by an attorney during the trial process. This is an open declaration by an attorney representing a party in a lawsuit, made after the jury has been removed from the courtroom, that requests the admission of...
(Wex page)
Badgering the witness is an objection that counsel can make during a cross-examination of a witness where opposing counsel becomes hostile or asks argumentative questions. If an attorney begins repeatedly asking a witness about the same thing...
(Wex page)
Generally, burden of proof describes the standard that a party seeking to prove a fact in court must satisfy to have that fact legally established. There are different standards for different circumstances.
For example, in...
(Wex page)
Business records exception is a statutory exception to the rule against hearsay in Federal and most state courts. The exception allows parties to enter regularly compiled records within an organization that meet a certain level of...
(LIIBULLETIN preview)
In Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, a state police officer pulled petitioner Terrence Byrd over for violating a state driving law. United States v. Byrd at 2. The police officer, eventually accompanied by another officer, found that Byrd was driving a rental...
(Wex page)
Character evidence is evidence on an individual’s personality traits, propensities, or moral standing.
Generally, under the common law character evidence is inadmissible in criminal cases unless the defendant raises the...