Law of Evidence 471
2022
Table of Contents
1. INTRODUCTION TO THE LAW OF EVIDENCE.......................................................................................................................... 4
1.1 INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY & THEORY OF THE LAW OF EVIDENCE................................................................................4
1.1.1 Definition & significance of Law of Evidence......................................................................................................................4
1.1.2 Functions of the LOE............................................................................................................................................................4
1.1.3 Where LOE fits.....................................................................................................................................................................5
1.1.4 The evolution of the jury.....................................................................................................................................................5
1.1.5 Jurors & assessors...............................................................................................................................................................7
1.1.6 Systems of the LOE............................................................................................................................................................11
1.1.7 Accusatorial v inquisitorial procedure...............................................................................................................................11
1.2 SOURCES OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN LAW OF EVIDENCE & THE IMPACT OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS............................................13
1.2.1 Sources of LOE...................................................................................................................................................................13
1.2.2 Impact of the Constitution................................................................................................................................................15
1.3 BASIC CONCEPTS & DEFINITIONS...........................................................................................................................................16
1.3.1 Evidence vs proof..............................................................................................................................................................16
1.3.2 Conclusive proof vs prima facie proof...............................................................................................................................16
1.3.3 Admissibility & weight of evidence...................................................................................................................................16
1.3.4 Evidence & argument........................................................................................................................................................17
1.3.5 Evidence & probative material..........................................................................................................................................17
1.3.6 Direct & circumstantial evidence......................................................................................................................................17
1.3.7 Primary & secondary evidence..........................................................................................................................................17
1.3.8 Classifications....................................................................................................................................................................18
1.3.9 Burden & Standard of proof: criminal matters.................................................................................................................21
1.3.10 Burden & Standard of Proof: Civil matters......................................................................................................................27
1.4 OVERVIEW OF STUDY UNIT 1........................................................................................................................................................ 30
1.4.1 History & theory................................................................................................................................................................30
1.4.2 Sources of LOE...................................................................................................................................................................30
1.4.3 Classifications....................................................................................................................................................................31
1.4.4 Burden of proof.................................................................................................................................................................31
1.4.5 Possible questions.............................................................................................................................................................32
2. ADMISSIBILITY OF RELEVANT EVIDENCE............................................................................................................................. 34
2.1 RELEVANCE AND ADMISSIBILITY............................................................................................................................................34
2.1.1 Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................................34
2.1.2 Rationale for the exclusion of irrelevant evidence............................................................................................................35
2.1.3 The meaning & determination of relevance.....................................................................................................................35
1
, 2.1.4 Checks on the admissibility of logically relevant evidence...............................................................................................35
2.2 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE & THE 4TH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION.............................................................................................................41
2.2.1 Fourth industrial revolution (4IR)......................................................................................................................................41
2.2.2 Artificial intelligence..........................................................................................................................................................41
2.2.3 Machine learning..............................................................................................................................................................42
2.2.4 Natural language processing............................................................................................................................................42
2.2.5 Key firms in the legal tech space.......................................................................................................................................42
2.2.6 AI & Lawyers.....................................................................................................................................................................43
2.2.7 AI & Evidence....................................................................................................................................................................43
2.2.8 Views on the future of AI in the legal space......................................................................................................................43
2.3 OVERVIEW OF STUDY UNIT 2 (PART 1)...........................................................................................................................................43
2.3.1 Artificial intelligence..........................................................................................................................................................43
2.3.2 Relevance & admissibility.................................................................................................................................................44
2.3.3 Scenario.............................................................................................................................................................................44
2.2 CHARACTER EVIDENCE.......................................................................................................................................................... 46
2.2.1 Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................................46
2.2.2 Character evidence in civil matters...................................................................................................................................47
2.2.3 Character of the accused in criminal matters...................................................................................................................47
2.2.4 Losing the shield against bad character evidence............................................................................................................50
2.2.5 Problem question..............................................................................................................................................................51
2.2.6 Application of s197 of the CPA..........................................................................................................................................51
2.2.7 Leading evidence of a previous conviction?......................................................................................................................54
2.2.8 Character evidence of the accused continued..................................................................................................................54
2.2.10 Admissibility of character evidence of complainant.......................................................................................................58
2.3 SIMILAR FACT EVIDENCE........................................................................................................................................................64
2.4 OPINION EVIDENCE............................................................................................................................................................... 64
2.5 PREVIOUS CONSISTENT STATEMENTS...................................................................................................................................64
3. THE EXCLUSION OF RELEVANT EVIDENCE: PRIVILEGE.......................................................................................................... 65
3.1 PRIVATE PRIVILEGE................................................................................................................................................................65
3.2 STATE PRIVILEGE (PUBLIC INTEREST IMMUNITY)..................................................................................................................65
2
,Overview:
First semester
o Basic principles
o Admissibility
o Privilege
Second semester
o Unconstitutionally obtained evidence
o Hearsay
o Admission & confession
o Kinds of evidence
o Detrimental statements
o Witnesses
o Evaluation & weight of evidence
3
,1. Introduction to the Law of Evidence
1.1 INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY & THEORY OF THE LAW OF
EVIDENCE
PRESCRIBED MATERIALS :
Principles Chapter 1
S v Gambushe 1997 1 SASV 638 (N)
1.1.1 Definition & significance of Law of Evidence
LOE is the area of law that governs the proof of facts in a court of law
In our legal system, when the matter is taken through the formal legal system, the matter will
be resolved in a court of law.
o Task before the court:
Determine/ make a finding in relation to the existence or non-existence of certain
facts
Have to do this before they make a judgment on the rights, duties & liabilities of
the parties involved in the legal dispute.
During the course of litigation, the LOE governs the proof of facts in that it basically indicates to
the court what facts can be received by the court (indicating what facts are relevant) as well as
how much weight the court is to attach to those facts.
Its significance is that:
o It forms part of procedural law which is the machine that transforms the rules of
substantive law into orders & enforcements
Substantive law is practically meaningless without procedural law
o LOE is a very big part of procedural law that ensures that the substantive rules are
basically brought into effect.
o Remember distinction
Substantive Law area of law that determines the rights and duties of parties.
Source is Roman-Dutch Law.
Procedural Law law that determines the procedural mechanisms to enforce
rights and duties. We follow English Law.
1.1.2 Functions of the LOE
Determines:
o Admissibility
What facts can be admitted into evidence to prove the facts in issue (facta
probanda).
o Manner of presentation
Indicates how should a particular piece of evidence be brought. Eg. brought orally
or electronically
4
, o What evidence should not be considered
Tell court what is relevant or irrelevant.
Eg. Unconstitutionally obtained evidence is irrelevant
o Factors influencing the probative value of evidence
Probative value = whether a piece of evidence makes a relevant disputed point,
more or less true.
o What evidence may be lawfully withheld from the court
What the parties can withhold.
o Rules for assessing the weight or cogency of the evidence
o What standard of proof should be satisfied before a party bearing the burden of proof can
be successful
1.1.3 Where LOE fits
LOE forms a branch of procedural law (adjectival law)
o Source English law
Important info because depending on how you classify a particular rule, you could
end up applying English law (which applies to procedural law) or Roman-Dutch
Law (which is the source for substantive law).
o We take this distinction for granted
However, it isn’t always clear & easy to distinguish.
For instance, there are some procedural rules (LOE) that give rights & duties. For
eg. the right to cross-examine & the duty to adduce evidence.
Traditionally rights & duties are substantive law, however these particular
rights & duties are procedural in nature & they therefore form part of the
LOE.
o Note that LOE is linked to criminal law (mainly) & civil procedure
1.1.4 The evolution of the jury
History & development of LOE broadly divided into 3 stages:
(1) The religious or primitive stage
Was thought that a person should not sit in judgment upon another
“Trial by ordeal”
Was considered the most reliable truth finding mechanism.
Was popular method in England.
Was an appeal to God to decide the factual dispute
The Anglo-Saxons
“Trial by ordeal”
o Eg. Ordeal by accursed morsel which was the idea that the
accused was required to eat a piece of bread, if he/she choked then
he/she would be found guilty.
o Some rationale found in this if a person was guilty they would
feel nervous/ anxious which would lead to dryness of mouth which
could lead to choking
5
, “Trial by battle”
o Trial by argument
o What we do in court, except we do it orally now & not physically
anymore
o Thus, could be earliest sign of adversarial system
(2) The formal stage
“Trial by ordeal” evolved into the formal stage.
During formal stage, the “oath” was the primary form of proof
This stage came as a result of increase of human reason
Humans started to replace God as judge of guilt or innocence
In England, the oath-helpers were popular
Not necessarily somebody who had personal knowledge of the matter or a
who was an eyewitness
It was a person who could give, under oath, a guarantee that the oath of
one party should be trusted.
Find traces of this rule in certain aspects of our current system of evidence
Oath & numbers of oath was decisive
The person who had the highest number of oath-helpers, wins the trial
This introduced the idea of an oath, which we still use today
(3) The rational stage & development of the jury
Jury is important in the context of our law because it significantly shaped our laws
During rational stage, significance of oath-helpers increased & they were no
longer called up to express mere belief in the veracity of a particular party’s oath.
They were expected to also sit as adjudicators.
Largely because of their knowledge of the events.
o So, we had a sort of crude trial by jury system developed, despite
the fact that the oath-helpers/ jurors of the time had personal
knowledge of the events in the matter.
Naturally, society grew & the matters before court became more complicated
Became more difficult for the members of the society to keep up with the
facts of the matters being disputed in court.
It is at this stage that we start to see the introduction of witnesses who had
personal knowledge of the facts.
Jurors v witnesses
With the introduction of witnesses, there was a distinction between jurors
& witnesses
o Jurors set aside their old character, as people who had personal
knowledge of the events & having personal knowledge of the
events would actually disqualify a person from being a juror in a
particular matter.
Idea:
6
2022
Table of Contents
1. INTRODUCTION TO THE LAW OF EVIDENCE.......................................................................................................................... 4
1.1 INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY & THEORY OF THE LAW OF EVIDENCE................................................................................4
1.1.1 Definition & significance of Law of Evidence......................................................................................................................4
1.1.2 Functions of the LOE............................................................................................................................................................4
1.1.3 Where LOE fits.....................................................................................................................................................................5
1.1.4 The evolution of the jury.....................................................................................................................................................5
1.1.5 Jurors & assessors...............................................................................................................................................................7
1.1.6 Systems of the LOE............................................................................................................................................................11
1.1.7 Accusatorial v inquisitorial procedure...............................................................................................................................11
1.2 SOURCES OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN LAW OF EVIDENCE & THE IMPACT OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS............................................13
1.2.1 Sources of LOE...................................................................................................................................................................13
1.2.2 Impact of the Constitution................................................................................................................................................15
1.3 BASIC CONCEPTS & DEFINITIONS...........................................................................................................................................16
1.3.1 Evidence vs proof..............................................................................................................................................................16
1.3.2 Conclusive proof vs prima facie proof...............................................................................................................................16
1.3.3 Admissibility & weight of evidence...................................................................................................................................16
1.3.4 Evidence & argument........................................................................................................................................................17
1.3.5 Evidence & probative material..........................................................................................................................................17
1.3.6 Direct & circumstantial evidence......................................................................................................................................17
1.3.7 Primary & secondary evidence..........................................................................................................................................17
1.3.8 Classifications....................................................................................................................................................................18
1.3.9 Burden & Standard of proof: criminal matters.................................................................................................................21
1.3.10 Burden & Standard of Proof: Civil matters......................................................................................................................27
1.4 OVERVIEW OF STUDY UNIT 1........................................................................................................................................................ 30
1.4.1 History & theory................................................................................................................................................................30
1.4.2 Sources of LOE...................................................................................................................................................................30
1.4.3 Classifications....................................................................................................................................................................31
1.4.4 Burden of proof.................................................................................................................................................................31
1.4.5 Possible questions.............................................................................................................................................................32
2. ADMISSIBILITY OF RELEVANT EVIDENCE............................................................................................................................. 34
2.1 RELEVANCE AND ADMISSIBILITY............................................................................................................................................34
2.1.1 Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................................34
2.1.2 Rationale for the exclusion of irrelevant evidence............................................................................................................35
2.1.3 The meaning & determination of relevance.....................................................................................................................35
1
, 2.1.4 Checks on the admissibility of logically relevant evidence...............................................................................................35
2.2 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE & THE 4TH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION.............................................................................................................41
2.2.1 Fourth industrial revolution (4IR)......................................................................................................................................41
2.2.2 Artificial intelligence..........................................................................................................................................................41
2.2.3 Machine learning..............................................................................................................................................................42
2.2.4 Natural language processing............................................................................................................................................42
2.2.5 Key firms in the legal tech space.......................................................................................................................................42
2.2.6 AI & Lawyers.....................................................................................................................................................................43
2.2.7 AI & Evidence....................................................................................................................................................................43
2.2.8 Views on the future of AI in the legal space......................................................................................................................43
2.3 OVERVIEW OF STUDY UNIT 2 (PART 1)...........................................................................................................................................43
2.3.1 Artificial intelligence..........................................................................................................................................................43
2.3.2 Relevance & admissibility.................................................................................................................................................44
2.3.3 Scenario.............................................................................................................................................................................44
2.2 CHARACTER EVIDENCE.......................................................................................................................................................... 46
2.2.1 Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................................46
2.2.2 Character evidence in civil matters...................................................................................................................................47
2.2.3 Character of the accused in criminal matters...................................................................................................................47
2.2.4 Losing the shield against bad character evidence............................................................................................................50
2.2.5 Problem question..............................................................................................................................................................51
2.2.6 Application of s197 of the CPA..........................................................................................................................................51
2.2.7 Leading evidence of a previous conviction?......................................................................................................................54
2.2.8 Character evidence of the accused continued..................................................................................................................54
2.2.10 Admissibility of character evidence of complainant.......................................................................................................58
2.3 SIMILAR FACT EVIDENCE........................................................................................................................................................64
2.4 OPINION EVIDENCE............................................................................................................................................................... 64
2.5 PREVIOUS CONSISTENT STATEMENTS...................................................................................................................................64
3. THE EXCLUSION OF RELEVANT EVIDENCE: PRIVILEGE.......................................................................................................... 65
3.1 PRIVATE PRIVILEGE................................................................................................................................................................65
3.2 STATE PRIVILEGE (PUBLIC INTEREST IMMUNITY)..................................................................................................................65
2
,Overview:
First semester
o Basic principles
o Admissibility
o Privilege
Second semester
o Unconstitutionally obtained evidence
o Hearsay
o Admission & confession
o Kinds of evidence
o Detrimental statements
o Witnesses
o Evaluation & weight of evidence
3
,1. Introduction to the Law of Evidence
1.1 INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY & THEORY OF THE LAW OF
EVIDENCE
PRESCRIBED MATERIALS :
Principles Chapter 1
S v Gambushe 1997 1 SASV 638 (N)
1.1.1 Definition & significance of Law of Evidence
LOE is the area of law that governs the proof of facts in a court of law
In our legal system, when the matter is taken through the formal legal system, the matter will
be resolved in a court of law.
o Task before the court:
Determine/ make a finding in relation to the existence or non-existence of certain
facts
Have to do this before they make a judgment on the rights, duties & liabilities of
the parties involved in the legal dispute.
During the course of litigation, the LOE governs the proof of facts in that it basically indicates to
the court what facts can be received by the court (indicating what facts are relevant) as well as
how much weight the court is to attach to those facts.
Its significance is that:
o It forms part of procedural law which is the machine that transforms the rules of
substantive law into orders & enforcements
Substantive law is practically meaningless without procedural law
o LOE is a very big part of procedural law that ensures that the substantive rules are
basically brought into effect.
o Remember distinction
Substantive Law area of law that determines the rights and duties of parties.
Source is Roman-Dutch Law.
Procedural Law law that determines the procedural mechanisms to enforce
rights and duties. We follow English Law.
1.1.2 Functions of the LOE
Determines:
o Admissibility
What facts can be admitted into evidence to prove the facts in issue (facta
probanda).
o Manner of presentation
Indicates how should a particular piece of evidence be brought. Eg. brought orally
or electronically
4
, o What evidence should not be considered
Tell court what is relevant or irrelevant.
Eg. Unconstitutionally obtained evidence is irrelevant
o Factors influencing the probative value of evidence
Probative value = whether a piece of evidence makes a relevant disputed point,
more or less true.
o What evidence may be lawfully withheld from the court
What the parties can withhold.
o Rules for assessing the weight or cogency of the evidence
o What standard of proof should be satisfied before a party bearing the burden of proof can
be successful
1.1.3 Where LOE fits
LOE forms a branch of procedural law (adjectival law)
o Source English law
Important info because depending on how you classify a particular rule, you could
end up applying English law (which applies to procedural law) or Roman-Dutch
Law (which is the source for substantive law).
o We take this distinction for granted
However, it isn’t always clear & easy to distinguish.
For instance, there are some procedural rules (LOE) that give rights & duties. For
eg. the right to cross-examine & the duty to adduce evidence.
Traditionally rights & duties are substantive law, however these particular
rights & duties are procedural in nature & they therefore form part of the
LOE.
o Note that LOE is linked to criminal law (mainly) & civil procedure
1.1.4 The evolution of the jury
History & development of LOE broadly divided into 3 stages:
(1) The religious or primitive stage
Was thought that a person should not sit in judgment upon another
“Trial by ordeal”
Was considered the most reliable truth finding mechanism.
Was popular method in England.
Was an appeal to God to decide the factual dispute
The Anglo-Saxons
“Trial by ordeal”
o Eg. Ordeal by accursed morsel which was the idea that the
accused was required to eat a piece of bread, if he/she choked then
he/she would be found guilty.
o Some rationale found in this if a person was guilty they would
feel nervous/ anxious which would lead to dryness of mouth which
could lead to choking
5
, “Trial by battle”
o Trial by argument
o What we do in court, except we do it orally now & not physically
anymore
o Thus, could be earliest sign of adversarial system
(2) The formal stage
“Trial by ordeal” evolved into the formal stage.
During formal stage, the “oath” was the primary form of proof
This stage came as a result of increase of human reason
Humans started to replace God as judge of guilt or innocence
In England, the oath-helpers were popular
Not necessarily somebody who had personal knowledge of the matter or a
who was an eyewitness
It was a person who could give, under oath, a guarantee that the oath of
one party should be trusted.
Find traces of this rule in certain aspects of our current system of evidence
Oath & numbers of oath was decisive
The person who had the highest number of oath-helpers, wins the trial
This introduced the idea of an oath, which we still use today
(3) The rational stage & development of the jury
Jury is important in the context of our law because it significantly shaped our laws
During rational stage, significance of oath-helpers increased & they were no
longer called up to express mere belief in the veracity of a particular party’s oath.
They were expected to also sit as adjudicators.
Largely because of their knowledge of the events.
o So, we had a sort of crude trial by jury system developed, despite
the fact that the oath-helpers/ jurors of the time had personal
knowledge of the events in the matter.
Naturally, society grew & the matters before court became more complicated
Became more difficult for the members of the society to keep up with the
facts of the matters being disputed in court.
It is at this stage that we start to see the introduction of witnesses who had
personal knowledge of the facts.
Jurors v witnesses
With the introduction of witnesses, there was a distinction between jurors
& witnesses
o Jurors set aside their old character, as people who had personal
knowledge of the events & having personal knowledge of the
events would actually disqualify a person from being a juror in a
particular matter.
Idea:
6
