Admissibility of Electronic Records as Evidence in India

What types of evidence are admissible in courts?

 

 

Evidencse Law

 

The law of evidence governs the use of testimony (e.g. oral or written statements, such as an affidavit) and exhibits (e.g. physical objects) or other documentary material which is admissible (i.e. allowed to be considered by the trier of fact, such as jury) in a judicial or administrative proceeding (e.g., a court of law Finally), there are strict rules governing the admission of statements from witnesses not present at the trial. This is called hearsay.

 

Types of Evidence

 

Demonstrative Evidence:  This is a common form of proof, generally having the form of the representation of an object.  Examples include: photographs, videos, sound recordings, x-rays, maps, drawings, graphs, charts, simulations, sculptures, and models, among others.

 

Digital Evidence:  In recent years, the use of digital evidence in trials has greatly increased.  Simply put, it is any type of proof that can be obtained from an electronic source, such as emails, hard drives, word processing documents, instant message logs, ATM transactions, cell phone logs, and so forth.

 

Documentary Evidence:  Similar to demonstrative evidence, above, documentary evidence consists of any proof that can be presented in writing (contracts, wills, invoices, etc.).  However, term can technically include any number of media upon which such documentation can be recorded and stored (photographs, recordings, films, printed emails, etc.).

 

Exculpatory Evidence:  Typically used in criminal cases, this type of evidence is that which favors the defendant, either partially or totally removing their guilt in the case.  In the United States, if the prosecutor or police have found evidence, it is their duty to disclose it to the defendant.  Failure to do so can result in the case being dismissed.

 

Physical Evidence:  Quite simply, this type of evidence is any proof introduced in the form of a physical object, whether whole or in part.  In criminal proceedings, such evidence might consist of dried blood, fingerprints, a murder weapon, DNA samples, casts of footprints or tires at the scene of the crime, and so forth.

 

Prima Facie Evidence:  This is "evidence sufficient to establish a claim or defense until rebutted by contrary evidence" (Blackwell, 2004).  In Latin, it literally means "on its first appearance", and such evidence is generally deemed sufficient to prove a particular proposition or fact if it is not refuted by later evidence or argumentation.

 

Scientific Evidence:  Evidence submitted to the court claiming to be scientific in nature must first conform to generally-accepted principles of the scientific community.  In addition, judges must now insure that such evidence is also reliable (Bergman and Berman-Barrett, 2005).

 

Testimony:  This is the "spoken evidence given by a witness under oath in court or at a deposition, or written evidence given under oath through an affidavit" (Blackwell, 2004).  Generally, a witness is called forth, solemnly swears to tell the truth under the penalty of perjury.  This is one of the most common forms of evidence in the legal system.