Hearsay

Question 1

Can you establish hearsay in a case based on precedents?

Answer 1

No, Hearsay isn’t precedential. Can’t say in this case, this was hearsay, so this is hearsay here.

Question 2

If a statement is hearsay what is the rule?

Answer 2

The rule is that it is presumptively inadmissible because hearsay statements are inherently unreliable.

Question 3

What is the rule if a statement is not hearsay?

Answer 3

It is likely admissible.

Question 4

When is a statement not hearsay?

Answer 4

if something isn’t an out of court statement or it isn’t introduced for the truth of its contents, then it’s not hearsay and you can evade the hearsay rule entirely.

if you can identify a relevant purpose where witnesses are relaying out of court statements that do not go to the truth of their contents or depend on the statement being true -
> the witness is subject to the court’s reliability controls.

Question 5

If a witness testifies that another person said something is that evidence hearsay?

Answer 5

Yes, but only if the trier of fact is asked to accept the declarant’s statement as true.

Question 6

When is hearsay admissible?

Answer 6

If it falls into an exception.

Question 7

What constitutes hearsay?

Answer 7

There is an out of court statement and is being introduced for the truth of its contents.

Question 8

What is an out of court statement?

Answer 8

• It is not being repeated under oath by a witness in court/not being testified in court
• it’s a statement that is not brought into court by that witness
• statement made by someone, not in court
• documents are always out of court unless the contents are repeated by the author who comes into court

Question 9

When can’t a witness not relay what another person saw or heard?

Answer 9

If the purpose is to prove the truth of its contents, there’s not way to reliably know this is true.

Question 10

What are the 4 hearsay dangers?

Answer 10

1) Misperception
2) Misremembering
3) Inaccurate narration
4) Lying

Question 11

Are implied statements hearsay?

Answer 11

If an implied assertion is derived from an out-of-court statement or act, and that statement or act is being admitted as evidence for the truth of the implied assertion’s contents, then it will be considered hearsay and will generally be inadmissible.