In a federal civil trial, Defendant calls Witness to describe a hallway conversation. Plaintiff objects that Witness has received treatment for bipolar disorder and gave two inconsistent pretrial accounts of the conversa...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 601
In a federal criminal trial, a seven-year-old eyewitness says she knows the difference between "real" and "pretend," promises to tell what really happened, and says lying to the judge would be wrong. She cannot define th...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 603
A key witness speaks limited English. Plaintiff proposes to use the witness's cousin as an interpreter because the cousin is fluent in English and the witness's language. Defendant objects that the cousin has not been qu...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 604
...tements in a federal civil trial, Plaintiff asks the court to exclude witnesses from the courtroom. Defendant is an individual who will testify. Corporate Third-Party Defendant designates its risk manager as its represen...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 615
During direct examination, Witness says she cannot remember the serial number on a machine. Counsel shows her a maintenance log. After reviewing it silently, Witness says she now remembers the number and states it aloud...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 612
...a federal securities-fraud trial, Defendant asks the court to exclude witnesses from the courtroom. The government wants three people to remain: Lead Agent, who sat with prosecutors during the investigation and will test...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 614, Fed. R. Evid. 615, Fed. R. Evid. 611
On direct examination, Witness testifies only about the signing of a contract. On cross-examination, opposing counsel asks about an unrelated warehouse accident involving the same company. Counsel says the accident quest...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 611(b)
A pedestrian was standing with her back to an intersection. She heard brakes and a crash, turned around, and saw Defendant's truck stopped in the crosswalk. She did not see the traffic signal before the crash. Plainti...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 602
After a verdict, a juror signs an affidavit stating that another juror brought internet articles into the jury room and read from them during deliberations. The affidavit also states that the articles changed three ju...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 606(b)
...rt column "looked freshly cut." Plaintiff asks to call the judge as a witness about that observation. Defendant does not immediately object because counsel assumes the judge will deny the request. Later, Plaintiff asks t...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 605, Fed. R. Evid. 606
During a federal trial, the presiding judge tells counsel that she personally saw one party sign the disputed contract at a settlement conference months earlier. A party asks to call the judge to testify about that ob...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 605
...ion? Discuss the court's control over examination, hostile or adverse witnesses, and scope limits. This essay tests Rule 611 control of leading questions and scope of examination. Fed. R. Evid. 611, Fed. R. Evid. 403
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 611, Fed. R. Evid. 403
In a products-liability trial, Plaintiff calls Inspector, who examined a conveyor belt three days after Worker was injured. Inspector testifies that she remembers the inspection but cannot recall the exact measurement...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 612, Fed. R. Evid. 611, Fed. R. Evid. 803(5)
Plaintiff calls Defendant's operations director, who still works for Defendant and was personally involved in the disputed shipment. The director answers evasively. Plaintiff begins asking leading questions on direct...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 611(c)
...ire because Lily is not an expert. How should the court rule? Discuss witness competency, personal knowledge, oath or affirmation, lay limits, and how the court should handle weaknesses in Lily's testimony. This essay te...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 601, Fed. R. Evid. 602, Fed. R. Evid. 603, Fed. R. Evid. 611
Witness testified under oath at an earlier injunction hearing about the same machine failure now at issue in a federal damages trial. Defendant's lawyer cross-examined Witness at the injunction hearing on the cause of th...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 804(b)(1), Fed. R. Evid. 804(a)
Witness testifies at a federal trial that she never saw Defendant near the warehouse. On cross-examination, she denies previously telling a police officer, "I saw Defendant unlock the warehouse door." Defense counsel cal...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 613(b), Fed. R. Evid. 801(d)(1)(A)
Witness testifies at trial that she cannot remember whether Defendant ran the red light. At her deposition in the same case, under penalty of perjury and while subject to cross-examination, Witness testified that Defenda...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 801(d)(1)(A)
After a recorded phone call is offered at trial, Witness testifies that she recognizes Defendant's voice because she spoke with Defendant in person during a deposition two months after the call and the recorded voice has...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 901(b)(5)
...ed in state court for arson of a warehouse. A jury was sworn, and two witnesses testified. On the third day, the judge declared a mistrial because a juror suffered a medical emergency and no alternate juror was available...
Citations: U.S. Const. amend. V, Blockburger v. United States, United States v. Perez, United States v. Dixon, Gamble v. United States
Detective did not witness a burglary but watched a store surveillance video afterward. At trial, the prosecutor asks Detective to testify that "the video showed Defendant breaking the display case." The prosecutor does n...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 1001, Fed. R. Evid. 1002, Fed. R. Evid. 1003
In a federal civil trial, Plaintiff calls Witness expecting her to identify Defendant's delivery van as the van that hit Plaintiff's car. On direct examination, Witness instead says she is no longer sure whose van hit th...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 607
In an assault trial, Witness testifies that one minute after a glass bottle shattered near Victim's head, Victim was shaking and bleeding and shouted, "Dana threw it at me!" Dana objects that the statement is hearsay. Wh...
Citations: Fed. R. Evid. 803(2)
A case is filed in a proper federal venue, but most witnesses and evidence are located in another federal district where the case could have been brought. Which statute is the ordinary basis for transfer? The correct ans...
Citations: 28 U.S.C. 1404(a)
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