Comparative Evidence Law

Sponsored by Professors George Fisher and David Sklansky, this one-credit, one-month seminar is the creation of its two primary instructors, Professors Joan Picó i Junoy and Juan Antonio Andino López, both of the Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Professors Picó and Andino aim to enable students to compare the evidence principles of the common law, as practiced in the U.S. and U.K. and some British Commonwealth Countries, with the civil law evidence principles embraced in France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. The course will benefit students who someday may take part in transnational litigation or business transactions or will engage in cross-cultural research. After a brief historical review of the development of these two procedural traditions, our focus will shift to an overview of civil law evidentiary principles with emphasis on the roles of the judge and parties in preparing the evidence. Then we take up a comparison of rules governing character evidence, witness competency, hearsay, and scientific evidence, as well as evidentiary privileges and standards and burdens of proof. Elements used in grading: Attendance, Class Participation, Final Paper. Class meets Tuesdays, 6:30PM - 8:30PM, April 5, 12, 19 (6:30PM - 9:30PM), and 26.