Author: John Sopinka

Publisher:

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 1150

ISBN-13: 9780433398233

The second edition was thoroughly revised and updated to reflect the "principled approach" to evidentiary rules enunciated by the Supreme Court of Canada since the first edition was published. The law of evidence continues to develop at a rapid rate and the "principled approach" is being extended and applied to virtually every area of the subject such that it has now become the new cornerstone of modern evidence law. With the "principled approach", context becomes an essential component in the application of the rule, and courts must consider the underlying principles of the rule in the context of the particular facts of the case. The supplement focuses on those areas of the law of evidence where the impact of the "principled approach" (primarily by SCC and provincial appeallate court decisions) has had the most significant impact. Areas such as hearsay, confessions, similar fact evidence, expert opinions, privilege, public interest immunity, the examination of witnesses and rules dispensing with or facilitating proof.