The law of Evidence is “Lex Fori” which governs the Court. Comment on this statement

Question: The law of Evidence is “Lex Fori” which governs the Court. Comment on this statement.

Find the answer to the mains question of the Law of Evidence only on Legal Bites. [The law of Evidence is “Lex Fori” which governs the Court. Comment on this statement.]

Answer

The word 'Evidence' is derived from the Latin word “Evideari” which means to show clearly or to prove. Evidence is the only possible way by which the court of justice is allowed to make judicial inferences to render a decision. The definition of evidence states that it is the proof of any fact in issues which implies that without evidence there will be no possibilities for the court to prove any fact in issues or even to establish any facts in the cases and render a decision accordingly.

To implement a structured legal base of collecting evidence in the course of protecting those rights, Law of evidence comes into the picture. Evidence Law tells the basic principles and rules regarding collection. So, the process of evidencing any facts or proof should be governed by a well-established law in order to achieve speedy and fair justice.

The law of evidence is not just a fundamental principle governing the process of proof rather it also has a multidimensional purpose of governing the rules relating to the process of proof in court proceedings.

In India, the Law of Evidence is based on the English law of Evidence. Despite the fact that the India Evidence Act is based on English law, it is not fully comprehensive. The most crucial fact to be noted is that our law of evidence is a Lex Fori’ law, which refers to the law of the land in which court proceedings are held. Thus, the Indian Evidence Act is LEX FORI Law. The phrase “Lex Fori” means the law of the place of the action which means the law of the place where the proceeding is being taken.

Law of evidence is part of the law of procedure. That is why it is called the Lex Fori or the law of the court or forum. It means that Indian courts know and apply only the Indian law of evidence. Meaning of LEX FORI is thereby; where evidence is taken in one country in aid of suit or proceedings in another country, the law applicable to the recording of the evidence would be the law prevailing in the country where the proceeding is going on. Whether certain evidence proves a certain fact or not is to be determined by the law of the country where the question arises, where the remedy is sought to be enforced and the court sits to enforce it.

For example, if a legal proceeding is going on in Sri Lanka and evidence is taken in India for the said proceeding whether by commission or by the assistance of courts in India, the laws which will be applied during such recording of evidence will be Sri Lankan Law of Evidence.

---

Important Mains Questions Series for Judiciary, APO & University Exams

1. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-I
2. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-II
3. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-III
4. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-IV
5. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-V
6. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-VI
7. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-VII
8. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-VIII
9. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-IX
10. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-X