 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Nelson v. University of Hawaii12/11/2001
stating, in pertinent part, as follows:
ebuttal evidence is evidence which is used to rebut evidence introduced primarily by the opposing party in which . . . the plaintiff . . . in essence would have been surprised by what it has. In other words, that you had no idea that the evidence that was being brought forth was going to be brought forth by the defendants. And you did not have an opportunity to either discover it or to introduce any evidence in your [case-in-chief] to counteract it.
And, obviously, what you have proposed now is not rebuttal evidence as far as this court is concerned. So, accordingly, I'm precluding your proffered rebuttal evidence.
"In civil trials generally, the introduction of evidence in rebuttal and in surrebuttal is a matter within the discretion of the trial court and appellate courts will not interfere absent a abuse thereof." Housing Finance and Dev. Corp. v. Ferguson, 91 Hawai'i 81, 93, 979 P.2d 1107, 1119 (1999) (internal quotation marks omitted); see also Ditto v. McCurdy, 86 Hawaii 84, 87, 947 P.2d 952, 955 (1997); Takayama v. Kaiser Foundation Hosp., 82 Hawaii 486, 495, 923 P.2d 903, 912 (1996). In order to determine whether there has been an abuse of discretion, we must examine the sequence of the trial. Takayama, 82 Hawaii at 496, 923 P.2d at 913. This court has recognized three general rules with respect to the admission of rebuttal evidence. First, as a general rule, a party is bound to give all available evidence in support of an issue in the first instance it is raised at trial and will not be permitted to hold back evidence confirmatory of his or her case and then offer it on rebuttal. See id. at 497, 923 P.2d at 914. "Second, this general rule does not necessarily apply where the evidence sought to be presented on rebuttal is 'negative of a potential defense,' even if the evidence is also confirmatory of an affirmative position upon which the party seeking to present the evidence bears the burden of proof." Id. Third, although a plaintiff is not required to call, during his or her case-in-chief, every conceivable witness who might contradict a potential defense witness, it is also generally true that
party cannot, as a matter of right, offer in rebuttal evidence which was proper or should have been introduced in chief, even though it tends to contradict the adverse party's evidence and, while the court may in its discretion admit such evidence, it may and generally should decline to admit the evidence. Id. (citations omitted).
Nelson's proffered evidence of her publications was "confirmatory of her case" in that it tended to prove that she fulfilled her research responsibilities, worked in collaboration with colleagues, and made progress toward publications as recommended in her 1995 evaluation and that, therefore, the negative evaluations and adverse employment decisions were based on discrimination or retaliation rather than on her performance. The evidence also specifically rebutted Defendants' claims that Nelson was terminated because she did not fulfill her duties and that she was not entitled to damages for her loss of income. Some of Nelson's proffered rebuttal evidence, which included an article co-authored with another member of the faculty, also specifically rebutted negative comments made in the personnel committee's evaluation, e.g., that Nelson "has chosen to isolate herself from her colleagues[.]" See supra note 4.
Because the trial court's ruling on the motion in limine ostensibly precluded evidence of the 1996 contract renewal process, we cannot conclude that Nelson "held back" confirmatory evidence of her case. Moreover, it is unreasonable to suggest that Nelson should have an
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Hawaii Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|