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Some Observations On The Origin And Structure Of Evidence Rules Under The Common Law System And The Civil Law System Of "Free Proof" In The German Code Of Criminal Procedure, Karl H. Kunert

Buffalo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Use Of Record Of Criminal Conviction In Subsequent Civil Action Arising From The Same Facts As The Prosecution, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

The overwhelming majority of courts considering the issue without the aid of pertinent legislation have held that a record of a prior criminal conviction may not be used against a convicted person in subsequent civil proceedings arising from the same facts as the criminal prosecution but to which the state is not a party. It is admissible neither as evidence of the facts underlying it, nor as the basis of an estoppel preventing the convicted party from relitigating those issues which must have been decided against him in the criminal trial for the judge or jury to have found him …

Motions In Limine, Tom H. Davis

Cleveland State Law Review

Defendant's attorney in a tort or personal injury case can fumble, stumble and fall and win. A plaintiff's attorney can try his case perfectly and still lose. Since any charge of prejudicial tactics brought against the plaintiff usually will be more harmful than one brought against the defendant, it is the duty of the plaintiff's attorney to keep the case like "Caesar's wife," if he can.One of the best ways to accomplish this is through a motion in limine. For those who are not familiar with this practice, it is a motion, heard in advance of jury selection, which asks …

Should Virginia Adopt The Federal Rules Of Discovery?, Emanuel Emroch

University of Richmond Law Review

More than fifteen years -ago Virginia made a very important and progressive modification of the rules of practice and procedure in actions at law and suits in equity. The promulgation of the Rules of the Supreme Court of Appeals in 1950 substituted a modern system for an archaic, outmoded, and cumbersome one. Under the Rules litigants can state their case and plead in a brief and succinct manner, unhampered with unnecessary and ancient verbiage. There is less emphasis on form and more on substance, and this facilitates the better administration of justice. Generally, the Rules have unquestionably served the purposes …

The New Michigan Pre-Trial Procedural Rules-Models For Other States?, Robert Meisenholder

Michigan Law Review

The new Michigan procedural laws are embodied in a revised set of statutes and court rules which became effective January 1, 1963, after a long period of study by a Joint Committee on Michigan Procedural Revision. They abolish an anachronistic distinction between procedures in law and equity, abrogate a scattered, disorganized set of rules and statutes, and create a unified, coherent procedural system.

Civil Procedure-Trial Practice-Introduction Of Inadmissible Evidence To Cure Improper Argument By Counsel, Arthur M. Sherwood

Michigan Law Review

In a suit to recover damages for wrongful death arising out of an automobile accident, plaintiff's counsel offered in evidence the official report of a police officer, which included the officer's opinion that defendant's parked car had contributed to the collision. Defendant's objection to this evidence was sustained on the grounds that the report was hearsay and that it set forth a conclusion which only the jury could draw. Defendant's counsel, during his summation, asserted that no police officer had said that defendant's car had in any way caused the accident. The court, sua sponte, admitted into evidence the officer's …

Federal Civil Procedure-Discovery-Availability Of Attorney-Client Privilege To Corporations, Stephen M. Wittenberg

Michigan Law Review

During the pre-trial stage of a civil antitrust suit, plaintiff sought inspection of certain documents in the files of the corporate defendants' outside counsel. The defendant contended that these documents were protected from discovery by the attorney-client privilege. Upon motion for inspection, held, granted. The attorney-client privilege is not available to any of the corporate parties in this action. Radiant Burners, Inc. v. American Gas Ass'n, 207 F. Supp. 771, aff'd on rehearing, 209 F. Supp. 321 (N.D. Ill. 1962).

Abstracts Of Recent Cases, Charles Henry Rudolph Jr.

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Procedural Problems Of Class Suits, Joseph J. Simeone

Michigan Law Review

The purpose of this article is to discuss numerous aspects of the class device, to discuss the many procedural problems confronting court and counsel, to determine the effectiveness of one type of class suit-the spurious-and in the conclusion, to propose legislation for a new rule independent of the rules regarding class actions, a remedy which would more effectively permit the dispatch of numerous claims arising from similar fact patterns.

Abstracts Of Recent Cases, James Kilgore Edmundson Jr.

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Two Suggested Reforms In Ohio's Discovery Procedure, Frank Seth Hurd

Cleveland State Law Review

Attorney's will agree that an injustice occurs whenever one party prevails in a court of law and another's rights are defeated but for knowledge of the relevant facts. Further, most will agree that some such injustice is inevitable in any judicial system, all such systems being subject to some degree of error. No one can deny the professional responsibility of all attorneys to work actively toward the reduction of such error. As numerous commentators have pointed out, injustice may also result from delay. It is equally the responsibility of the Bar to work toward the alleviation of that source of …

Abstracts Of Recent Cases, Aaron David Trub

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Evidence - Rules Of Evidence In Disbarment, Habeas Corpus, And Grand Jury Proceedings, Paul S. Gerding S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

It is the purpose of this comment to examine three common-law proceedings in which rules of evidence are generally not governed by statute, to determine whether the liberalism expressed in administrative hearings has extended to non-statutory areas. Specifically, to what extent have the exclusionary rules of evidence, which rest on the theory of preventing the jury from being misled (the "jury theory"), been abandoned in disbarment, habeas corpus, and grand jury proceedings?

Evidence - Rules Of Evidence In Disbarment, Habeas Corpus, And Grand Jury Proceedings, Paul S. Gerding S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

It is the purpose of this comment to examine three common-law proceedings in which rules of evidence are generally not governed by statute, to determine whether the liberalism expressed in administrative hearings has extended to non-statutory areas. Specifically, to what extent have the exclusionary rules of evidence, which rest on the theory of preventing the jury from being misled (the "jury theory"), been abandoned in disbarment, habeas corpus, and grand jury proceedings?

The Civil Investigative Demand: New Fact-Finding Powers For The Antitrust Division, Richard L. Perry, William Simon

Michigan Law Review

The complexity, scope and length of modem antitrust litigation bring to prominence the procedures by which evidence - particularly documentary evidence - is discovered and placed before the courts and administrative agencies. Fact-finding mechanisms now available for ferreting out and prosecuting violations make up an imposing array. These include the grand jury subpoena, the discovery provisions of the Federal Rules of Civil and Criminal Procedure and the subpoena and visitorial powers of certain administrative agencies. The "civil investigative demand," a precomplaint compulsory process, is a new weapon proposed to be added to this arsenal. Few dispute the desirability of new …

Admissibility Of Illegally Obtained Evidence In A Civil Case

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

Eminent Domain - Procedure - Relation Of Judge And Jury In Michigan Condemnation Proceedings, John H. Jackson S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

The relationship of judge to jury in Michigan condemnation proceedings presents in many ways a merger of some of the problems and questions contained in the relationship of judge to jury in civil trials, and of court to tribunal in administrative law. Theorists as well as the practicing lawyer in Michigan and some other states" may well find in the development of the Michigan condemnation proceeding an interesting example of the growth of a procedure for adjudication, in a context of cross-fire between legislative ideas and judicial interpretation of a constitutional provision.

Conclusive Presumptions In West Virginia, J. L. R.

West Virginia Law Review

Presumptions, as might be expected, have been appearing and disappearing throughout the history of evidence. Much confusion has attended the use of the word, and there has been no less confusion about the kinds of presumptions, be they presumptions of law, presumptions of fact, conclusive presumptions or whatever name courts and writers ascribe to them. The conclusive presumption is an especially troublesome creature, some writers denying its existence while others recognize it but devote very little time to it. It is the purpose here, in a humble way, to look at its use in this state and to determine if …

Abstracts Of Recent Cases, G. H. A.

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Civil Procedure - Pre-Trial Discovery - Disclosure Of Amount Of Defendant's Liability Insurance, David L. Genger

Michigan Law Review

In an action arising out of a highway collision, plaintiff sought disclosure of the amount of defendant's liability insurance in a pre-trial discovery proceeding. The defendant was adjudged to be in default for his refusal to disclose this information. On a writ of certiorari, held, the order of the trial court is quashed. Only matters which can actually be admitted and used as evidence or matters which might lead to the finding of such evidence are proper subjects of discovery under the Florida rule. The amount of defendant's insurance is not relevant to the litigation since it will accomplish …

Constitutional Law - Fifth Amendment - Right Of Defendant In Denaturalization Proceedings To Refuse To Testify, Theodore G. Koerner

Michigan Law Review

The United States as plaintiff instituted denaturalization proceedings alleging that deliberately false statements were made by defendant at the time of his naturalization. No "affidavit showing good cause" for such suit, required by section 340 (a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, was filed with the original complaint although one was filed with a later amended complaint. When plaintiff sought to take defendant's deposition pursuant to rule 26, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, defendant appeared for the examination but refused to be sworn. He was taken before the district court which directed that he be sworn, and he …

Abstracts Of Recent Cases, T. E. P.

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Damage Awards, Instructions, And The Jury's Common Knowledge, H. G. U.

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

What Is This Thing Called Hearsay?, John W. Reed

Articles

This article is based on an address delivered at the 1956 Advocacy Institute at the University of Michigan. A re-examination of elementary principles, the discussion proceeds on the express assumption that much of the uncertainty and confusion in usa of the hearsay rule is unnecessary because it is due to failure to recall and employ these principles.

Morgan: Some Problems Of Proof Under The Anglo-American System Of Litigation, Roy R. Ray

Michigan Law Review

A Review of Some Problems of Proof Under the Anglo-American System of Litigation. By Edmund Morris Morgan.

Civil Procedure And Evidence—Charge Limiting Use Of Evidence, Joseph Mintz

Buffalo Law Review

Fred W. Hoch Assoc. v. Western News Union, 308 N. Y. 461, 126 N. E. 2d 749 (1955).

Rule 43(A) And The Communication Privileged Understate Law: An Analysis Of Confusion, George W. Pugh

Vanderbilt Law Review

What rules govern the admissibility of evidence in federal court? Rule 43 (a) purports to provide the answer with respect to cases falling within the ambit of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.' Is the Rule working satisfactorily, or should it now be abandoned in favor of a new and different solution? The problem thus presented is broad and pervasive. A definitive answer will not be attempted in this paper. Instead, the writer proposes to give only a general discussion of the broader aspects of the Rule, and to limit analysis of the cases to a very restricted area--the meaning …

Hearsay And Conspiracy: A Reexamination Of The Co-Conspirators' Exception To The Hearsay Rule, Joseph H. Levie

Michigan Law Review

The expansion of the law of conspiracy and the increasing number of prosecutions for its violation have been much commented on lately. Many kinds of anti-social conduct directed principally against the public welfare are now frequently punished by prosecution for conspiracy instead of prosecution for the substantive offense. Conspiracy is an ideal way to deal with organized crime and has been used extensively against quasi-treasonous activities. Similarly the Sherman Act's criminal sanctions are primarily couched in terms of conspiracy and the civil conspiracy action for divestiture or dissolution is the usual method of enforcing the antitrust laws. This emphasis on …

Evidence-Privilege-Right Of Third Person To Assert Privilege As To Accident Report Made Confidential By Statute, Richard W. Young S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff brought a negligence action for injuries sustained when the automobile in which she was a passenger collided with that operated by the defendant. Defendant questioned a police officer, who had filed the accident report, concerning statements made to him by the driver of the vehicle in which the plaintiff was riding. The trial court permitted this testimony over the plaintiff's objection that these statements were privileged under an Iowa statute purporting to make written accident reports confidential and inadmissible in evidence. On appeal after a verdict was returned in favor of the defendant, held, reversed. The statute can …

Civil Procedure - Compensation Of Witnesses In A Civil Action, David W. Belin S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

As the amount and complexity of litigation has increased, there have been corresponding increases in demands for added compensation of witnesses. Like the juror, the witness often receives the time-honored answer that he cannot be heard to complain that his compensation is inadequate; the administration of justice is a mutual benefit to all members of the community, and each is under a public duty to further it.

At common law witnesses received no compensation. Time spent in testifying was held to be claimed by the public as a tax, paid by the witness to the system of law which protected …