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New Zealand law explained for everyone

Evidence Act 2006

Preliminary provisions - Purpose, principles, and matters of general application

8: General exclusion

You could also call this:

"When is evidence not allowed in court to keep things fair and on time?"

Illustration for Evidence Act 2006

When you are in a court case, the Judge has to decide if some evidence can be used. The Judge must not let evidence be used if it might be unfair or if it will make the case take too long. You might wonder what 'probative value' means - it refers to how useful the evidence is in proving something.

If the evidence is going to make the case unfair, the Judge must not use it. The Judge also has to think about whether the evidence will make the case longer than it needs to be. In a criminal case, the Judge has to consider whether the defendant can still defend themselves properly.

The Judge has to balance these things when deciding what evidence to use. This means the Judge has to think carefully about what evidence is allowed in the case. The goal is to make sure the case is fair and does not take longer than necessary.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM393569.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Courts and legal helpCrime and justice > Criminal law
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7: Fundamental principle that relevant evidence admissible, or

"Only evidence that is relevant and allowed by law can be used in a court case."

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9: Admission by agreement, or

"Agreeing to use evidence in court without having to prove it"

Part 1Preliminary provisions
Purpose, principles, and matters of general application

8General exclusion

  1. In any proceeding, the Judge must exclude evidence if its probative value is outweighed by the risk that the evidence will—

  2. have an unfairly prejudicial effect on the proceeding; or
    1. needlessly prolong the proceeding.

      1. In determining whether the probative value of evidence is outweighed by the risk that the evidence will have an unfairly prejudicial effect on a criminal proceeding, the Judge must take into account the right of the defendant to offer an effective defence.