Justice

Justice

• natural justice

• independence of the judiciary

• legal rights

• independent and impartial adjucators

• law application equally and fairly

Natural justice

• rules and procedures to be followed by any person/ agency who is an unbiased adjudicator who resolves disputes about the rights of others in an open forum where each party to a dispute has an equal opportunity to present its case

Principles of natural justice

• impartial adjudication (judge/ jury who rule against actual or perceived bias/interest)

• hearing both parties (equal opportunities for each party to know and present the case openly and fairly)- pre trial stages, adversarial trial procedures

• evidence based decisions- relevant evidence must be known and presented- rules of evidence

• transparent and open court processes- to ensure public confidence in justice, otherwise there are arbitrary and unjust outcomes- open courts, judges provide reasons for decisions and judicial independence- decisions are made by judges, juries or magistrates

Adversarial trial

• Contest to reveal the truth through competition between parties to bring forth highest quality evidence the parties can locate.

• Rigorous testing of the evidence and high-quality legal arguments concerning the interpretation of laws.

burden of proof

• Rests with the accuser regardless of trial type.

• The accuser is the party bringing the dispute to trial and bears responsibility for proving the defendant’s liability or guilt.

Roles in trial and standards of proof

Civil: plaintiff and defendant- balance of probabilities (more likely than not)

Criminal: prosecution and defense- beyond reasonable doubt (defense creates reasonable doubt -means any doubt a reasonable person (sound mind, rational thinking) would have.)

Higher standard because consequences (criminal record, loss of liberty, life) are severe.

Judge

• person with authority to adjudicate disputes/ sentence and determine remedies.

• enforce trial procedures to uphold fairness and natural justice.

• finds facts based on evidence

• passive role

Judicial independence

Judicial independence is essential for rule of law and a fair trial under principles of natural justice.

Phases of trial

• pre trial

• trial

• post trial

Pre trial

• Clarify disputes between parties.

• Discover and prepare evidence.

• Decide how law may apply to the case.

• Many cases are resolved here by:

  • Parties changing their position after clarification and evidence discovery.

  • Avoiding the need for a full trial.

Trial phase

• Discover truth and interpret law as applied to specific facts.

• Resolve disputes through an impartial adjudicator (judge or jury).

Indictable cases- trial phase

• Strict procedures uphold natural justice.

• Judges ensure fairness.

• Parties actively run their case with equal opportunities to:

  • Address the court.

  • Call witnesses.

  • Present evidence.

  • Test the other party’s evidence.

Trial phase procedure

1. Opening adress (p bears burden of proof, goes first)

2. presenting and testing evidence (admissible evidence must conform to rules, legal expertise required to object/ admit, defendant doesn’t have to present (presumed innocent), d cross examines)

3. closing adress (p then d) (summarize arguements and persaude)

4. verdict (judge or jury weighs evidence on standard of proof)

Deliberation and verdict in criminal and civil

Civil

• Deliberation:

  • Judge retires alone to deliberate.

• Decision:

  • Judge finds defendant liable or not liable.

Criminal

• Deliberation:

  • Judge instructs jury to retire and deliberate (if jury trial).

  • If judge-alone trial, judge retires alone to deliberate.

• Verdict:

  • Judge or jury finds defendant guilty or not guilty.

Post trial (criminal and civil)

• Occurs only if plaintiff/prosecution meets standard of proof.

• If not proven:

  • Civil defendant may be awarded court costs.

  • Criminal defendant is free to leave with no sanctions.

• If proven:

  • Civil: court orders remedies to right the wrong or enforce contract.

  • Criminal: court imposes sanctions to punish, rehabilitate, deter, and protect community (may include imprisonment).

Evidence

• Used to resolve disputed facts.

• Types:

  • Oral testimony: Under oath, including examination-in-chief (EIC), cross-examination, re-examination.

  • Non-oral evidence:

    • Written witness statements (affidavits).

    • Documents (receipts, photos, recordings).

    • Physical objects (weapons, missiles).

    • Miscellaneous (DNA, GPS trackers).

• Presented by witnesses familiar with the evidence.

Rules of evidence

propensity, character, hearsay, opinion, relevance

Propensity

• Shows defendant’s tendency to behave in a certain way.

• Prosecution/plaintiff may use prior convictions to establish propensity for similar crimes.

• Admissible only if:

  • It has significant probative value.

  • Risk of unfair trial is low.

  • A fair-minded person would consider it in the public interest.

• This is determined in a pretrial hearing called a voir dire.

• Similar tendency evidence rules apply in uniform law jurisdictions.

Character

• Prosecution/plaintiff cannot introduce bad character evidence (including prior convictions) unless:

  • Defendant presents evidence of good character or challenges witness credibility.

  • Then prosecution/plaintiff may introduce counteractive bad character evidence.

• Supports the principle of “innocent until proven guilty.”- shouldn’t be convicted solely based on reputation or past mistakes—they must be proven guilty of the specific crime charged, not judged for behavior unrelated to the current charge.

Opinion

• Generally inadmissible unless:

  • From an expert (e.g., forensic pathologist giving professional opinion on time of death).

  • Lay opinions accepted if based on everyday experience (e.g., estimating age or vehicle speed) to help court understand witness’s perception of events

Hearsay

• Must be based on direct experience and observation.

• Second-hand “hearsay” generally inadmissible.

• Exceptions:

  • Representations made by witnesses (subject to cross-examination).

  • Voluntarily given, legally obtained admissions.

Relevance

Evidence must be pertinent to the case and help establish disputed facts.