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Contents May Have Shifted: Disentangling the Best Evidence Rule from the Rule Against Hearsay

Author

Colin Miller

Published

December 19, 2014

The rule against hearsay covers a statement offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted but does not cover a statement offered for another purpose. Meanwhile, the Best Evidence Rule states that a party seeking to prove the content of a writing, recording, or photograph must produce the original or account for its non-production. Does this mean that the Rule is inapplicable when a party seeks to prove something other than the truth of the matter asserted in a writing, recording or photograph? Most courts have answered this question in the affirmative. This Essay argues these courts are wrong.

Citation

Colin Miller, Contents May Have Shifted: Disentangling the Best Evidence Rule from the Rule Against Hearsay, 71 Wash. & Lee L. Rev. Online 180 (2014).

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