Legal Definitions - judicial notice

Judicial notice is a legal principle that allows a court to accept certain facts as true without formal proof or the presentation of evidence by the parties involved in a case. This is typically done for facts that are so widely known, easily verifiable, or universally accepted that it would be a waste of time and resources to require a party to present evidence to prove them.

Essentially, if a fact is indisputable and generally known within the court's jurisdiction, or can be accurately and readily determined from sources whose accuracy cannot reasonably be questioned, a judge can declare that fact to be true. In civil cases, once a court takes judicial notice of such a fact, it is considered conclusive and binding on the parties.

Here are a few examples to illustrate how judicial notice works:

• Example 1: Geographic Location

  Imagine a lawsuit concerning a property dispute where the exact location of the property in question is crucial. If the property is described as being in "Dallas, Texas," the court can take judicial notice that Dallas is a major city located within the state of Texas. The judge would not require a lawyer to present a map, call a geographer as a witness, or submit a document proving that Dallas is indeed in Texas. This is a commonly known and indisputable geographic fact.

  This example illustrates judicial notice because the fact that Dallas is in Texas is universally known and easily verifiable, making formal proof unnecessary and inefficient.

• Example 2: Calendar Dates

  Consider a breach of contract case where the agreement stipulated that a payment was due on "the third Tuesday of October 2022." During the trial, there might be a dispute about what specific calendar date that refers to. The judge can take judicial notice of a calendar to determine that the third Tuesday of October 2022 was October 18, 2022. The court does not need a party to formally introduce a calendar into evidence or have a witness testify about the date.

  This example demonstrates judicial notice because the specific date is an easily verifiable fact from a reliable source (a calendar) that is not subject to reasonable dispute.

• Example 3: Scientific Principles or Public Records

  In a personal injury case where someone slipped on ice, the court might take judicial notice of the fact that water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius) at standard atmospheric pressure. Similarly, if a case involves a specific federal regulation, the court can take judicial notice of the existence and content of that regulation, as it is a matter of public record readily available from official government sources.

  These examples show judicial notice applied to established scientific principles or official public records, which are considered indisputable and can be confirmed from highly reliable sources.