Uniform Evidence

Uniform Evidence is a clear and concise introduction to the rules of evidence, as they apply to Australian courts. Written in an engaging and accessible style, the second edition covers all uniform evidence law jurisdictions including the courts of the Commonwealth, New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory, Victoria, Tasmania and most recently the Northern Territory. The book explains and critiques uniform evidence law, with case examples to illustrate the practical applications of uniform evidence law and flowcharts to clearly summarise complex legal rules and issues.New to this editionNow covers all of the UEL jurisdictions including the Northern Territory and TasmaniaUpdated to include significant and recently decided casesUpdated to reflect all amendments to the legislation

Table of Contents:
Table of CasesTable of Statutes1. Uniform Evidence Law1.1 Evidence law1.2 Uniform law 1.3 Other lawsPART 1: ADDUCING EVIDENCE2. Witnesses2.1 Competence and compellability of witnesses2.2 Failure to call witnesses2.3 The examination of witnesses3. Documentary and Real Evidence3.1 Documents3.2 Particular kinds of documents3.3 Real evidencePART 2: ADMISSIBILITY4. Relevance4.1 The fundamental rule of evidence4.2 The different ways in which evidence can be relevant4.3 Applying the test of relevance4.4 Provisional relevance5. The Hearsay Rule5.1 Rationale for the hearsay rule5.2 Scope of the hearsay rule5.3 Contemporaneous mental and physical states5.4 Evidence relevant for a non-hearsay purpose6. Hearsay Exceptions6.1 The role of hearsay exceptions6.2 First-hand hearsay6.3 Remote hearsay7. Opinion7.1 The opinion rule7.2 Permitted opinions7.3 Managing expert opinions8. Admissions8.1 Adverse inferences8.2 Excluding admissions8.3 Proving admissions9. Judgments and Convictions9.1 The exclusionary rule9.2 Exceptions to the rule10. Tendency and Coincidence10.1 Tendency and coincidence reasoning10.2 The exclusionary rules10.3 Tendency evidence about rape complainant11. Credibility11.1 The nature of credibility evidence11.2 The relevance of credibility evidence11.3 The admissibility of credibility evidence11.4 Cross-examination as to credibility11.5 Rebutting denials by other evidence11.6 Rehabilitating credibility11.7 The credibility of hearsay11.8 Expert evidence11.9 The credibility of complainants in sexual offence trials12. Character12.1 Tendency and coincidence evidence about the defendant12.2 The defendant’s credibility12.3 The defendant’s character12.4 Managing character evidence in jury trials13. Identification13.1 Identification evidence13.2 Identification procedures14. Privileges14.1 The law of privilege14.2 Professional confidential relationship privilege14.3 Journalist privilege14.4 Sexual assault counselling privileges14.5 The privilege against self-incrimination14.6 Evidence of matters of state14.7 Evidence of settlement negotiations14.8 Other privileges15. Client Legal Privilege15.1 Justification for the privilege15.2 Scope of the privilege15.3 Loss of privilege16. Discretionary and Mandatory Exclusions16.1 Nature of discretion16.2 The general discretion to exclude evidence16.3 General discretion to limit use of evidence16.4 Exclusion of prejudicial evidence in criminal proceedings16.5 Discretion to exclude improperly or illegally obtained evidencePART 3: PROOF17. The Burden and Standard of Proof17.1 The burden of proof17.2 The standard of proof 18. Facts That Can Be Proved without Evidence18.1 The doctrine of judicial notice18.2 Formal admissions and agreed facts19. Warnings and Information19.1 Uniform evidence law directions19.2 Common law directions20. Procedural Provisions20.1 The voir dire20.2 Advance rulings20.3 Waiver of the rules of evidence20.4 The giving of leave, permission and directions20.5 The facilitation of proof20.6 Ancillary provisions

About the Author :
Jeremy Gans-Professor, Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne. Andrew Palmer-Barrister at Law; Association Professor, Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne.