Civil Procedure and Evidence Flashcards

Under FRE 615, which party cannot be excluded from the courtroom under the rule on witnesses?

Answer: A party who is a natural person

FRE 615 allows courts to exclude witnesses from the courtroom during other testimony, but a party who is a natural person has an absolute right to be present throughout the trial.

Which doctrine bars relitigation of an issue that was actually litigated and necessarily decided in prior litigation between the same parties?

Answer: Collateral estoppel (issue preclusion)

Collateral estoppel (issue preclusion) prevents relitigation of a specific issue that was actually contested, fully litigated, and necessarily decided in prior litigation.

Under FRE 801(d)(2), an opposing party's statement is not hearsay when offered against whom?

Answer: The party who made it

Under FRE 801(d)(2), a statement made by a party opponent is not hearsay when offered against that same party—reflecting the principle that one cannot object to their own words as hearsay.

A motion for judgment as a matter of law (JMOL) under FRCP 50(a) may be granted when which standard is met?

Answer: No reasonable jury could find for the nonmoving party

JMOL is appropriate when, viewing evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmovant, a reasonable jury could not find for that party.

Under FRE 404(a)(2), when may a criminal defendant introduce evidence of a pertinent character trait of the victim?

Answer: To show the victim was the first aggressor in a self-defense case

A criminal defendant may introduce character evidence of the victim's pertinent trait—such as a reputation for violence in a self-defense case—to support the defense theory.

Under Missouri civil procedure, what is the general statute of limitations for personal injury claims?

Answer: 5 years

Missouri's general statute of limitations for personal injury actions is five years under RSMo § 516.120.