Vondran Litigation Essentials - Evidence - Judicial Notice

Introduction

In court, you have to PROVE your allegations and that is usually done through the presentation and authentication of EVIDENCE such as:

• Documentary evidence (ex, a software End User License Agreement) or discovery responses
• Photographs (ex. evidence of photo infringement on a website)
• Witness testimony (ex. "I told the CEO about possible music infringement so I know he was aware") including depositions
• Physical evidence (ex forensic evidence of unauthorized software use or BitTorrent Strike 3 Holdings lawsuit)

But there is another form of evidence known as Judicial notice.

Asking the Court to "Take Judicial Notice" of a Fact

Some things are so obvious the Court should not waste the jury's time establishing certain facts, this is where you can ask a court to take judicial notice:

Under Fed. Rules of Evid 201(d):

“A court shall take judicial notice if requested by a party and supplied with the necessary information.” An adjudicative fact may be judicially noticed if it is “not subject to reasonable dispute in that it is either:

(1) generally known within the territorial jurisdiction of the trial court,

or

(2) capable of accurate and ready determination by resort to sources whose accuracy cannot reasonably be questioned.” 

California state evidence law explains some things that can be subject to judicial notice:

Judicial notice shall be taken of the following:

(a) The decisional, constitutional, and public statutory law of this state and of the United States and the provisions of any charter described in Section 3, 4, or 5 of Article XI of the California Constitution.

(b) Any matter made a subject of judicial notice by Section 11343.6, 11344.6, or 18576 of the Government Code or by Section 1507 of Title 44 of the United States Code.

(c) Rules of professional conduct for members of the bar adopted pursuant to Section 6076 of the Business and Professions Code and rules of practice and procedure for the courts of this state adopted by the Judicial Council.

(d) Rules of pleading, practice, and procedure prescribed by the United States Supreme Court, such as the Rules of the United States Supreme Court, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, the Admiralty Rules, the Rules of the Court of Claims, the Rules of the Customs Court, and the General Orders and Forms in Bankruptcy.

(e) The true signification of all English words and phrases and of all legal expressions.

(f) Facts and propositions of generalized knowledge that are so universally known that they cannot reasonably be the subject of dispute.

452. Judicial notice may be taken of the following matters to the extent that they are not embraced within Section 451:

(a) The decisional, constitutional, and statutory law of any state of the United States and the resolutions and private acts of the Congress of the United States and of the Legislature of this state.

(b) Regulations and legislative enactments issued by or under the authority of the United States or any public entity in the United States.

(c) Official acts of the legislative, executive, and judicial departments of the United States and of any state of the United States.

(d) Records of (1) any court of this state or (2) any court of record of the United States or of any state of the United States.

(e) Rules of court of (1) any court of this state or (2) any court of record of the United States or of any state of the United States.

(f) The law of an organization of nations and of foreign nations and public entities in foreign nations.

(g) Facts and propositions that are of such common knowledge within the territorial jurisdiction of the court that they cannot reasonably be the subject of dispute.

(h) Facts and propositions that are not reasonably subject to dispute and are capable of immediate and accurate determination by resort to sources of reasonably indisputable accuracy.

Contact a Civil Litigation Lawyer

We can be reached at (877) 276-5084 or by filling out the contact form below.  We handle federal copyright infringement lawsuits in California and Arizona.  We have offices in San Francisco, Newport Beach, Santa Monica, Phoenix, and San. Diego.