Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 182: Listen and Learn -- Policy Exclusions (Evidence)
Law School Toolbox Podcast Episode 281: Listen and Learn -- Character Evidence
Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 121: Listen and Learn -- Character Evidence
Law School Toolbox Podcast Episode 259: Listen and Learn -- Relevance in Evidence
Identifying junk science is merely the first step of the battle when considering argument approach and courtroom strategy. With this in mind, the main goals are to keep junk science out of the courtroom and, of course, win...more
I remember listening to Justice Frank Cleckley of the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, my professor for Evidence, open his first lecture with a discussion of Federal Rule of Evidence 103. As a young law student, I was...more
Expert witnesses can be critical to defending a tax position—but what happens when an expert must maintain confidentiality over information that is important to their analysis? Preserving this confidentiality while ensuring a...more
Having taught Federal Rule of Evidence 502 (FRE 502) in my law classes for over a decade, I felt I had a firm grasp of its nuances. Yet recent litigation where I serve as Special Master prompted me to revisit the rule with...more
If you’re an attorney, a paralegal, an investigator, a law enforcement officer, or even if you just watch a lot of legal dramas on television, you’re likely familiar with the term “chain of custody”....more
There is an adage that lawyers learn the version of the rules of evidence and procedure that are current when they are in law school and then do not look at them again. While that is (hopefully) an exaggeration, it is always...more
The amended language of Federal Rule of Evidence 702, which governs the admissibility of expert testimony in federal court, takes effect on December 1, 2023. Even though the Advisory Committee comment stresses that it...more
Rule 702 of the Federal Rules of Evidence governs expert witness testimony in federal courts. On April 24, 2023, the United States Supreme Court approved an amendment to Rule 702 (the “Amendment”), which will go into effect...more
If you don’t know where a line is, you can’t say whether someone has crossed it. That principle applies in spades to expert witnesses, particularly when their role in the case calls on them to help the jury understand where...more
Hearsay is simple enough to define – it is an out of court statement offered for the truth of the matter asserted. But practicing attorneys know that the definition of hearsay is deceptively complex. Questions like, “what is...more
The California Supreme Court recently issued an important ruling on the use of civil discovery depositions in lieu of trial testimony. The court’s opinion in Berroteran v. Los Angeles County Superior Court, No. S259522...more
Federal Rule of Evidence 702—Testimony by Expert Witnesses—was promulgated in 1975 when Congress first enacted the Federal Rules of Evidence. Original Rule 702 simply stated that “[i]f scientific, technical, or other...more
No visit to New Orleans is complete without a bowl of gumbo. There are many preferences, of course, but every great bowl of gumbo has the same foundation. It is of no consequence whether you prefer Dooky Chase’s savory, porky...more
Federal litigators aren’t taking sufficient advantage of 2008 amendments to Federal Rule of Evidence 502, which gives them the authority to obtain protective orders that can stem the damage from inadvertent disclosure of...more
Judicial notice is one of the less glamorous parts of motion practice. A request for judicial notice is typically a lower-priority background document, drafted towards the end of the brief-writing process, along with a notice...more
Be careful what you post on the Internet. Not everyone listens to this warning, and those who ignore it could see their posts, tweets, shares, and likes front and center — in court....more