Legal Examination of Civil Evidence in the Iranian Legal System and the Federal Rules of Evidence of the United States
Keywords:
evidence, civil evidence, claim, Federal Rules of Evidence (U, S, )Abstract
The present research, using a descriptive–comparative method, examines the legal dimensions of civil evidence in the Iranian legal system and the Federal Rules of Evidence of the United States. The transformation of legal systems in advanced societies, particularly in the field of evidentiary rules, has been directed toward empowering judges to uncover the truth and achieve real justice, rather than merely resolving disputes. The most important instrument for attaining this goal is the possibility of judicial assessment of evidence presented to prove claims. Evidence assessment means the judge’s determination of the value and probative strength of each piece of evidence. This concept varies with each case depending on the totality of circumstances and the factual context of the dispute. In other words, the status and outcome of evidence evaluation, when discussed in abstract and theoretical terms, differs from when it is analyzed in connection with a specific subject matter; in most cases, its instrumental role in leading to truth and fact-finding outweighs its formal or intrinsic significance. In practice, when a person asserts a claim, by legal principle, that person is obliged to prove the truth of the claim in order to persuade the judge’s conscience and compel a ruling in his or her favor. This process, which serves to demonstrate and realize the asserted right in litigation, is known as the “proof stage.” It presupposes the existence of facts and events, which are assumed to have objectively occurred, and relates to what is called the “existence stage.” The proof stage — meaning the process of discovering and recognizing the right by recourse to an event — is intimately linked to cognition and understanding and comes after the existence stage; it is accomplished through evidence (dalil). The “evidentiary means” or adilla-ye esbāt-e daʿvā (means of proving a claim), also referred to as ṭarīq al-qāḍī (the judge’s path to truth), are the instruments used before judicial bodies to establish claims, guide the judge toward reality, and satisfy his or her conscience in discerning the truth. Evidence reaches its ultimate function only when it convinces the judge. Within this process, the judge’s role is critical: to examine and weigh the presented proofs, to reconcile the realm of proof with the realm of existence, and thereby ascertain the truth.
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