Evidence Commons^™

A Bludgeon By Any Other Name: The Misuse Of Ethical Rules Against Prosecutors To Control The Law Of The State, Frank O. Bowman Iii

Faculty Publications

My objective here is threefold: (1) to explain these ethical rules and demonstrate how each is in conflict with longstanding principles of federal criminal law; (2) to explain why these rules are illegitimate, both as rules of ethics and as rules of positive law; and (3) to offer some observations on how the dispute over these rules can sharpen our thinking about the nature and proper limits of ethical rules governing lawyers.

The Allure Of The Illogic: A Coherent Solution For Rule 703 Requires More Than Redefining "Facts Or Data", Paul R. Rice

Mercer Law Review

In his article entitled Developing A Coherent Theory of the Structure of Federal Rule of Evidence 703, Professor Imwinkelried proposes a theory for the interpretation of Rule 703. He argues that a restrictive interpretation of the terms "facts or data" in Rule 703 would resolve the conflicts that have plagued that Rule. Professor Imwinkelried's proposal would exclude research data and other background facts from the definition of "facts or data." By his interpretation, when an expert is testifying to an opinion based on facts that have not been proven at the trial the expert witness may only rely on …

Experts, Judges, And Commentators: The Underlying Debate About An Expert's Underlying Data, Ronald L. Carlson

Mercer Law Review

Debate concerning the limits of judicial power over expert witnesses remains active and in its early stages. Commentators charting the course of judicial opinions observe that some of the modem regulatory proposals have yet to enlist official adoption. Part of the problem may relate to recognition of questions. Courts will adjudicate critical issues only when they are made aware of them. The burden of calling attention to an expert's flawed bases falls squarely on trial lawyers who must make astute and incisive objections.

In this formative period of legal development important decisions will be made. The future direction of courtroom …

Developing A Coherent Theory Of The Structure Of Federal Rule Of Evidence 703, Edward J. Imwinkelried

Mercer Law Review

Some commentators have suggested that the American judicial hearing is becoming trial by expert. As recently as 1974, the Jury Verdict Reporter for Cook County, Illinois, listed only 188 regularly testifying experts? Today, there are more than 3,100-a 1,540 percent increase. In the late 1980s, the Cook County state courts averaged one expert per trial. In some areas, the trend is even more pronounced. In the early 1990s, the Rand Corporation released a study of the use of experts in trials in California courts of general jurisdiction. Expert witnesses appeared in eighty-six percent of the trials studied, an average of …

The Use And Effectiveness Of Various Learning Materials In An Evidence Class, Stephen J. Shapiro

All Faculty Scholarship

Like many law teachers, I take reasonable care in selecting the outside materials I require my students to use (or recommend to them) in preparing for class and studying for the exam. I base my choice on my own notions of what would be most helpful to them in learning the material, preparing for class, succeeding on the exam, and preparing to be lawyers. I carefully weigh such matters as length of assignment, interest to the students, and active versus passive learning.

My assessment, however, is based almost entirely on my own notions of what the students will find most …

The Clipper Chip Proposal: Deciphering The Unfounded Fears That Are Wrongfully Derailing Its Implementation, 29 J. Marshall L. Rev. 475 (1996), Howard S. Dakoff

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Chain Of Custody, Paul C. Giannelli

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Lessons For The United States: A Greek Cypriot Model For Domestic Violence Law, Joan L. Neisser

Michigan Journal of Gender & Law

The purpose of this Article is twofold: to view the problem of domestic violence victims not wishing to testify against their abusers through the lenses of different feminist perspectives; and to use the Greek Cypriot experience as a model to test the value of these theories when developing legal policies addressing this issue.

When The Constable Blunders: A Comparison Of The Law Of Police Interrogation In Canada And The United States, Robert Harvie, Hamar Foster

Seattle University Law Review

This Article explores the Supreme Court of Canada's use of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in limiting police interrogations and compares its case decisions with cases from the Supreme Court of the United States. Part II of this Article examines the purposes and policies underlying sections 10(b), 7, and 24(2) of the Charter. Part III then examines the application of sections 10(b) and 7 in situations where (1) suspects are interrogated by uniformed police officers or other persons known to be in authority, and (2) suspects are interrogated surreptitiously by persons not known to be in authority. In both …

Arizona V. Evans: Narrowing The Scope Of The Exclusionary Rule, Laura A. Giantris

Maryland Law Review

No abstract provided.

Substance And Form In Scientific Evidence: What Daubert Didn't Do, Samuel R. Gross

Book Chapters

On its face, Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals was about as easy a case as the Supreme Court gets. The plaintiff claimed that their birth defect were caused by the anti-nausea drug Bendectin, which their mothers had used during their gestation. In response to a motion for summary judgment by the defendant, the plaintiff presented affidavits of eight expert witnesses who offered their opinion - based on a variety of studies- that Bendectin was indeed the culprit. The federal district court that heard the motion granted summary judgment to the defendant, and the Ninth Circuit affirmed. Both lower court held …

The After-Acquired Evidence Rule: The Best Of All Possible Worlds?, Sharona Hoffman

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Allocating The Burden Of Proof In Sales Litigation, Alex Stein

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Instructing Illinois Juries On The Definition Of “Reasonable Doubt”: The Need For Reform, 27 Loy. U. Chi. L.J. 921 (1996), Timothy P. O'Neill

UIC Law Open Access Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Substance And Form In Scientific Evidence: What Daubert Didn't Do, Samuel R. Gross

Book Chapters

On its face, Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals was about as easy a case as the Supreme Court gets. The plaintiffs claimed that their birth defects were caused by the anti-nausea drug Bendectin, which their mothers had used during their gestation. In response to a motion for summary judgment by the defendant, the plaintiffs presented affidavits of eight expert witnesses who offered their opinions - based on a variety of studies - that Bendectin was indeed the culprit. The federal district court that heard the motion granted summary judgment to the defendant, and the Ninth Circuit affirmed. Both lower courts …

Branding The Sexual Predator: Constitutional Ramifications Of Federal Rules Of Evidence 413 Through 415, Margaret C. Livnah

Cleveland State Law Review

This Note seeks to address both the potential constitutional consequences of the newly passed Federal Rules of Evidence 413 and 414 and the problems that these revisions were designed to remedy. Section II will introduce the history of the passage of these controversial revisions as primarily a political process and one which bypassed the standard rules of practice. Section III will address the procedural violations and the troubling inconsistency of the new rules with the federal courts' interpretation of the other Federal Rules of Evidence. Section IV of this Note will address the substantive constitutional issues presented by these amendments, …

State V. Riker, Battered Women Under Duress: The Concept The Washington Supreme Court Could Not Grasp, Ann-Marie Montgomery

Seattle University Law Review

Although some people have the option of going to the police after receiving threats on their lives, this was not the case for Deborah Riker: Deborah is a battered woman. Since age nine, Deborah suffered repeated torture and abuse at the hands of men who were in her life. In 1987, Deborah met Rupert Burke, a man who abused both women and drugs. When Burke threatened both Deborah and her sister, Deborah did what he told her to do: she soldhim cocaine. As a result, Deborah was charged with delivery and possession of cocaine. Deborah's case presented the classic defense …

Rule 607: Who May Impeach

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Rule 701: Opinion Testimony By Lay Witnesses

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Currency Contamination And Drug-Sniffing Canines: Should Any Evidentiary Value Be Attached To A Dog's Alert On Cash?, Andy G. Rickman

Kentucky Law Journal

No abstract provided.

A "Delicate And Difficult Task": Balancing The Competing Interests Of Federal Rule Of Evidence 612, The Work Product Doctrine, And The Attorney-Client Privilege, Daisy Hurst Floyd

Buffalo Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Paradox Of The Fresh Complaint Rule, Kathryn M. Stanchi

Scholarly Works

This Article explores the paradox of the fresh complaint rule, evaluates the proposed solutions, and suggests a modified rule as an interim solution. Part II of this Article explores the fresh complaint rule, from its historical roots in the English common law to its evolution in the United States, with special attention to the rationale for the rule, the requirement of freshness, and the standards for the rule's application. Parts III and IV examine the paradox raised by the need for and effectiveness of the rule and its concurrent harmful effects. Part V describes proposed solutions to the paradox and …

The Four Greatest Myths About Summary Judgment, James Joseph Duane

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

State Of The Art In Montana Products Liability Law, Carl W. Tobias

Law Faculty Publications

The United States District Court for the District of Montana recently certified an important question of products liability law to the Montana Supreme Court. United States Senior District Judge Paul J. Hatfield certified the following question:

In a strict products liability case for injuries caused by an inherently unsafe product, is the manufacturer conclusively presumed to know the dangers inherent in his product, or is stateof- the-art evidence admissible to establish whether the manufacturer knew or through the exercise of reasonable human foresight should have known of the danger?

Because the issue of the admissibility of state-of-the-art evidence in a …

Book Review Of Courtoom Handbook On Federal Evidence, James S. Heller

Library Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Therapists' Liability To The Falsely Accused For Inducing Illusory Memories Of Childhood Sexual Abuse - Current Remedies And A Proposed Statute, Joel Jay Finer

Journal of Law and Health

While sexual abuse of children has always been a real and horrific phenomenon (a fact unrecognized until relatively recently), the issue this Article will explore is whether, and under what circumstances, a person wrongly accused has, or should have, one or more causes of action against a therapist for culpably inducing the pseudomemory. To refine and make more rational legal actions by persons falsely accused of childhood sexual molestation (arguably justified under existing legal doctrine), this Article will propose specific legislation authorizing a lawsuit under codified circumstances and conditions.

That's My Story And I'M Stickin' To It: The Jury As Fifth Business In The Trial Of O.J. Simpson And Other Matters, Marianne Wesson

Publications

No abstract provided.

"Other Accident" Evidence In Product Liability Actions: Highly Probative Or An Accident Waiting To Happen?, Robert A. Sachs

Oklahoma Law Review

No abstract provided.

Evidence: Taylor V. State--Oklahoma Abandons The Frye Test And Forces Its State Court Judges To Enter The Twilight Zone, Paige Queen

Oklahoma Law Review

No abstract provided.

Patient-Psychotherapist Privilege: Acces To Clinical Records In The Tangled Web Of Repressed Memory Litigation, Elizabeth F. Loftus, John R. Paddock, Thomas F. Guernsey

University of Richmond Law Review

The 1990s promise to be an era of mental health litigation whose outcomes that some predict will dwarf the settlements awarded recently in lawsuits over sexual improprieties between psychotherapists and their patients. One expert estimates that over 17,000 claims will be filed in the next decade, with litigation costs in excess of $250 million. These new cases emerged as therapy patients began to accuse fathers and mothers, uncles and grandfathers, former neighbors and teachers, psychotherapists and countless others of sexually abusing them years ago.