Judicial notice

Judicial Notice is a rule in the law of evidence that allows a fact to be introduced into evidence if the truth of that fact is so notorious or well known that it cannot be refuted. This is done upon the request of the party seeking to have the fact at issue determined by the court. Matters admitted under judicial notice are accepted without being formally introduced by a witness or other rule of evidence, and even if one party wishes to lead evidence to the contrary.

Related Topics:
Law - Evidence - Party - Court - Witness

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For example, in an insurance claim for spoiled food from the August 14, 2003 blackout in north-east North America, the plaintiff would not be required to call witnesses to prove that there was no way to get power to run their freezers during the period in question.

Related Topics:
Insurance - August 14 - 2003

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A famous example of the use of judicial notice was Abraham Lincoln's famous "Almanac Case, " Illinois v. Armstrong (1858). When a witness claimed that the moon was directly overhead when he saw a murder, giving enough light to see clearly, Lincoln introduced an almanac into evidence to show that at the time in question, the moon was just above the horizon. The court accepted the information in the almanac despite evidence to the contrary from the witness.

Related Topics:
Abraham Lincoln - Moon - Murder - Almanac

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