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Materiality refers to the significance of evidence in deciding a case's outcome. An evidence is material if it has reasonable tendency to prove or disprove a material fact.

Presumption is an inference assumed by law as a starting point. It requires the other party to present evidence to the contrary if they wish to dispute the presumed fact.

Spousal testimonial privilege is the right of a married person to refuse to testify against their spouse in a legal proceeding. It promotes marital harmony but is not absolute and has exceptions.

Double jeopardy is the legal principle that forbids a person from being tried twice for the same offense. It's an important aspect of evidence law since it affects the admissibility of evidence in subsequent trials.

Rebuttal refers to evidence or testimony given to contradict, disprove, or nullify facts or assumptions introduced by the opposing party. It is presented after the opposing party's evidence.

Privilege in evidence law refers to a person's right not to disclose certain confidential communications. Examples include attorney-client privilege and spousal privilege.

Lay opinion refers to a witness's statement of their beliefs or judgments based on their perception and without any specialized expertise, which is admissible if it is rationally based on their observation.

An offer of proof is a procedural step where a party outlines what a witness would say or evidence would show if admitted, typically made after evidence is rejected to create a record for appeal.

Stipulation is an agreement between opposing parties on a point of fact or a procedural issue. Stipulations can simplify trials by eliminating the need to prove undisputed facts through evidence.

A dying declaration is a statement made by a person who believes they are about to die, concerning the cause or circumstances of their death. It's an exception to the hearsay rule in homicide prosecutions and civil cases.

Relevance is the measure by which any evidence contributes towards proving a matter of fact in contention. In evidence law, only relevant evidence is typically admissible unless an exclusionary rule applies.

Leading questions are questions that suggest the answer within the question itself, often answered by 'yes' or 'no'. They are generally disallowed on direct examination but allowed on cross-examination.

A declaration against interest is a statement so prejudicial to the person who made it that a reasonable person would not have made the statement unless believing it to be true. This is an exception to the hearsay rule.

Judicial discretion is the power that judges hold to make decisions guided by their personal judgment and based on the principles of law. They exercise this in matters of evidence admissibility, sentencing, and rulings on objections.

The standard of proof is the level of certainty and the degree of evidence necessary to establish proof in a criminal or civil proceeding. Common standards are 'beyond a reasonable doubt' and 'preponderance of the evidence'.

Hearsay is a statement made out of court presented to prove the truth of the matter asserted. It's generally inadmissible due to lack of cross-examination, reliability, and perception concerns.

An excited utterance is a statement relating to a startling event or condition made while the declarant was under the stress of excitement caused by the event or condition, which is an exception to the hearsay rule.

Subsequent remedial measures are actions taken after an injury or harm occurs to make future harm less likely. Such measures are generally not admissible to prove negligence, since they are policy-driven to encourage remedial steps.

Direct evidence directly proves a fact without needing inference or presumption. It includes eyewitness testimony and videos directly showing a defendant committing a crime.

Authentication is the process by which evidence, especially documents and electronic records, is proven to be genuine. Evidence must be authenticated before it can be admitted.

Impeachment is the process by which a party challenges the credibility of the opposing party's witness, by introducing evidence of bias, prior inconsistent statements, or other factors that might discredit them.

Judicial notice is when a court accepts certain facts as true without requiring formal proof, because they are common knowledge or easily verifiable by authoritative sources.

Habit evidence is information about a person's routine behavior that is regular and repetitive, which can be admissible to demonstrate that someone acted in conformity with that habit on a particular occasion.

Prior inconsistent statements are previous statements made by a witness that are materially different from their testimony at trial. They can be used to impeach a witness's credibility.

Past recollection recorded is a written or recorded statement made by a witness when the event was fresh in their memory, which they no longer recall sufficiently well. It can be read into evidence when the witness's memory fails.

Probative value indicates how strongly evidence can prove something in a court case. It is the actual effectiveness of evidence in establishing a fact that's significant to the case.

Expert testimony is provided by individuals with specialized knowledge or expertise that is not common to the average person, to assist the trier of fact in understanding the evidence or determining a fact in issue.

Character evidence involves information about a person's character to suggest that they acted in a certain way consistent with their character. Generally, it's not admissible for proving conduct in conformity therewith.

Chain of custody involves documenting the procession of evidence from the time it's collected until it's presented in court to establish its integrity and prevent tampering.

The adversarial system is a legal system where parties in a dispute present and argue their positions before an impartial judge or jury. The system assumes the truth emerges from the competition between the opposing parties.

The burden of proof is the obligation to prove one's assertion or case. In criminal law, it's the responsibility of the prosecution to prove the defendant's guilt 'beyond a reasonable doubt'.

Witness competency refers to the legal sufficiency and qualification of a witness to provide testimony in court based on factors like age, mental capacity, and understanding of the obligation to tell the truth.

The business records exception is an exception to the hearsay rule that allows business records to be admitted as evidence if they were made in the regular course of business and it was the regular practice to make such a record.

Circumstantial evidence implies a fact's truth without directly proving it. Inferences are required to connect the evidence to the conclusion, like using DNA to suggest someone's presence at a crime scene.

Present sense impression is an exception to the hearsay rule allowing for the admissibility of statements describing or explaining an event made while the declarant was observing the event or immediately thereafter.

The Confrontation Clause is part of the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, guaranteeing criminal defendants the right to confront witnesses against them. This affects the admissibility of out-of-court testimonial evidence.

Sua Sponte is a Latin term meaning 'of its own accord'; in legal context, it refers to when a judge acts without a motion from any party, often in the context of admitting or excluding evidence for procedural or evidentiary reasons.