Evidence Flashcards

A criminal defendant offers evidence that he offered to pay the victim's medical bills after a bar fight. Offered to prove he was not the aggressor, this evidence of paying medical expenses is:

Answer: Inadmissible to prove liability for the injury under Rule 409

Rule 409 excludes offers to pay medical expenses when offered to prove liability for the injury.

A witness is impeached with a prior inconsistent statement made in a deposition. That prior statement may be used substantively because:

Answer: It was given under penalty of perjury at a proceeding, making it non-hearsay under Rule 801(d)(1)(A)

A prior inconsistent statement given under oath at a trial, hearing, or deposition is defined as non-hearsay and admissible substantively.

In a negligence action, the plaintiff offers evidence that the defendant carries liability insurance to prove the defendant acted carelessly. This evidence is:

Answer: Inadmissible under Rule 411 to prove negligence

Rule 411 bars evidence of liability insurance to prove negligence or wrongful conduct, though it may be admitted for other purposes like ownership or bias.

A trucking company's daily maintenance logs, kept routinely by mechanics, are offered at trial. The logs qualify as business records if:

Answer: A custodian or qualified witness shows they were made at or near the time by someone with knowledge as a regular practice

FRE 803(6) requires records made at or near the time, by or from someone with knowledge, kept in the regular course of a regularly conducted activity.

A defendant claims self-defense and offers evidence of the victim's violent character. In response, the prosecution may:

Answer: Offer evidence of the victim's peaceful character and the defendant's violent character

Under Rule 404(a)(2), attacking the victim's character opens the door to rebuttal on the victim and to evidence of the defendant's same trait.

An attorney inadvertently produces a privileged memo during discovery in a federal case. Under FRE 502(b), the privilege is not waived if:

Answer: The holder took reasonable steps to prevent disclosure and promptly took reasonable steps to rectify the error

Rule 502(b) preserves privilege for inadvertent disclosures when reasonable precautions and prompt corrective steps were taken.

A lay witness offers an opinion that the driver 'was drunk' based on observing slurred speech and stumbling. This opinion is:

Answer: Admissible as a lay opinion rationally based on the witness's perception

Under FRE 701, lay opinions on intoxication are admissible when rationally based on first-hand observation and helpful to the jury.