The Law of Evidence is the means by which we go about determining accurately what occurred in the past, while also determining how it ought fairly to be understood or interpreted, and how it ought fairly to be evaluated. It is the material offered in court during a trial for the purpose of enabling the finder of fact (judge or jury) to reach a decision on the issues in dispute. The purpose of this online course is to examine all of the main topics within the Law of Evidence. Along with such basic concepts as relevance and the court's discretion to exclude technically admissible evidence, the topics that will be covered include the burden of proof, the course of the trial, the competence and compellability of witnesses, the opinion rule, the rule against hearsay, cross-examination, the law governing the admissibility of confessions, corroboration, privilege, and the principles that regulate the admission of character evidence. The programme has been approved by APRC, but it is not available yet on the programme listing set out below in question 13

The purpose of this online course is to examine all of the main topics within the Law of Evidence. Along with such basic concepts as relevance and the court's discretion to exclude technically admissible evidence, the topics that will be covered include the burden of proof, the course of the trial, the competence and compellability of witnesses, the opinion rule, the rule against hearsay, cross-examination, the law governing the admissibility of confessions, corroboration, privilege, and the principles that regulate the admission of character evidence. It will be suitable for anyone with an interest in the court process and fact finding. PROGRAMME CONTENT Week 1: Introduction Week 2: Burden of Proof Week 3: Competence and Compellability Week 4: Corroboration Week 5: Opinion Evidence Week 6: Cross-Examination Week 7: Similar Fact Evidence Week 8: Hearsay Week 9: Confessions and Admissions Week 10: Illegally and Unconstitutionally Obtained Evidence Week 11: Privilege Week 12: Discovery

On successful completion of this module, a student will be able to: - Differentiate between key concepts in the Law of Evidence - Describe the principles relating to the various exclusionary rules - Understand the relevance of the rules and the rationales for their application - Apply the rules and principles to scenarios so as to demonstrate the possibilities for conviction or acquittal.

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The module is taught online. On each topic students will be given additional reading (usually case law) to support their understanding. The topics will constantly evolve as new ECHR and Irish case law and legislation emerges. These raw materials and doctrinal legal method emphasise the coherence and unity of the subject. It involves the search for a 'system' of general, logically consistent principles, built up from the study of particular instances.In the law of evidence, the deductive syllogism - reasoning from a generalised major premise to a minor factual premise - is dependent upon the establishment of the factual pattern (minor premise) (F), the identification of the relevant legal norm (major premise) (R), and the application of the norm content to the determined fact to produce a particular legitimate conclusion (C). It can be presented as a simple formula: R + F = C. Students will be expected to engage in reasoning of this kind on each topic. The most up to-date books and articles will also be employed to provide critical insight.