Legal Definitions - undue prejudice

In legal terms, undue prejudice refers to the risk that certain information, evidence, or arguments presented in a court case might unfairly bias a judge or jury. This bias could lead them to make a decision based on emotion, sympathy, hostility, or other improper considerations, rather than solely on the relevant facts and applicable law.

While some information might be relevant to a case, it can be excluded if its potential to unfairly sway the decision-maker outweighs its actual value in helping to prove a point. The goal is to ensure that legal decisions are made rationally and impartially.

Here are a few examples to illustrate this concept:

• Example 1: Graphic Evidence in a Non-Violent Crime

  Imagine a defendant is on trial for a complex financial fraud scheme. The prosecution seeks to introduce extremely graphic photographs of a completely unrelated, gruesome accident scene that the defendant merely witnessed years ago, arguing it shows the defendant's "callous disregard for human suffering."

  This illustrates undue prejudice because the shocking nature of the accident photos, while potentially showing a general character trait, has very little direct relevance to whether the defendant committed financial fraud. The emotional impact of these images could unfairly inflame the jury's emotions, causing them to associate the defendant with violence or depravity and convict them based on an emotional reaction rather than the evidence pertaining to the financial crime itself. The potential for unfair bias far outweighs any minimal probative value.

• Example 2: Personal Details in a Contract Dispute

  Consider a civil lawsuit between two companies over a breach of contract. During the trial, one company attempts to introduce evidence that the CEO of the opposing company has a history of personal bankruptcies and has been divorced multiple times.

  This would likely be considered undue prejudice. The CEO's personal financial struggles or marital history are generally irrelevant to whether their company fulfilled its obligations under a specific business contract. Presenting such information could lead the jury to dislike the CEO personally and, by extension, their company, causing them to rule against the company based on moral judgment or personal disapproval rather than the actual terms of the contract and the facts of the alleged breach.

• Example 3: Highly Emotional Testimony in a Property Dispute

  In a property line dispute between neighbors, one neighbor wants to bring in several family members to testify about how emotionally distressed they have been by the dispute, describing sleepless nights, crying spells, and severe anxiety, even though the core issue is the legal boundary line and not emotional damages.

  This scenario demonstrates undue prejudice because while the neighbors' feelings are understandable, an excessive focus on their emotional distress, particularly if it's not directly tied to a claim for emotional damages, could unfairly sway the judge or jury. The highly emotional testimony might overshadow the objective evidence regarding property deeds, surveys, and historical use, leading to a decision based on sympathy for the distressed family rather than a dispassionate assessment of the legal facts of the property boundary.