p. 35910. The rule against hearsay
- Roderick MundayRoderick MundayFellow Emeritus of Peterhouse, Cambridge. Reader Emeritus in Law, University of Cambridge
Abstract
Titles in the Core Text series take the reader straight to the heart of the subject, providing focused, concise, and reliable guides for students at all levels. The rule against hearsay is one of the great exclusionary rules of the law of evidence. In a system that places a premium on orality, with witnesses delivering their testimony in person, it is an understandable corollary that witness A should often be forbidden from giving testimony on behalf of witness B. This chapter discusses the following: the rationale underlying a rule against hearsay; the hearsay rule in criminal cases, and its many exceptions, both at common law and under statute; and the remnants of the hearsay rule in civil proceedings.
