What is considered evidence in a court of law?

In a court of law, evidence is defined as anything that is allowed by the court to help establish the facts of a case. This encompasses a wide range of materials, including eyewitness accounts, physical objects, documents, expert testimony, and various other forms of information that can substantiate claims made by either party in a legal proceeding.

The court has specific rules that govern what types of evidence can be presented, often based on relevance, reliability, and admissibility. For example, while eyewitness accounts can be persuasive, they are just one type of evidence among many that the court will consider. Similarly, documentation prepared by law enforcement can be important, but it does not encompass all the potential evidence available. Hearsay statements, which are secondhand accounts of what someone else said, generally cannot be admitted as evidence due to their unverified nature, with certain exceptions. Thus, the broad definition of evidence as anything permitted by the court is key to understanding what can be used to prove facts in legal proceedings.