Res gestae

issues that are relevant to litigation

This article is for the legal term 'Res Gestae'. For the article on the record of the accomplishments of the first Roman emperor, Augustus, see the article for Res Gestae Divi Augusti. Res gestae (a Latin phrase meaning "things done") is an exception to the rule against Hearsay evidence. Res gestae is based on the belief that because certain statements are made naturally, spontaneously and without deliberation during the course of an event, they leave little room for misunderstanding/misinterpretation upon hearing by someone else (i.e. by the witness who will later repeat the statement to the court) and thus the courts believe that such statements carry a high degree of credibility. Statements which can be admitted into evidence as Res gestae fall into three headings:Words or phrases which either form part of, or explain, a physical act,Exclamations which are so spontaneous as to belie concoction, andStatements which are evidence as to someone's state of mind.
See more at Wikipedia.org...

Noun
1. rule of evidence that covers words that are so closely associated with an occurrence that the words are considered part of the occurrence and as such their report does not violate the hearsay rule
(hypernym) rule of evidence
(classification) law, jurisprudence
2. things done
(hypernym) action
(classification) Latin

res gestae, issues that are relevant to litigation

Latin for things done. A peculiar rule, used mostly in criminal cases, which allows hearsay if the statement is made during the excitement of the litigated event. - (read more on Res gestae)