Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Virginia

Re: Letter of apology admission of fault

I think my colleagues are assuming that you are a law student, although I know that legal questions are raised in some schools and colleges and paralegal programs.

First, you should not cheat yourself by failng to do research, but I think the purpose of this

BBS is to spread knowledge of the law so I will

give some answer. You should know that one of

the challenges in the law is not simply knowing

the right answer but finding legal precedents

to back up your position. That's why the legal

research is very important. The right answer is

not enough. You need the legal ammunition of

precedents.

HOWEVER, your assignment is very interesting

because the General Assembly at this very moment

is debating a bill that would change the answer.

So you can get an interesting discussion.

Any out of court statement (or document) by a

person who is NOT present as a witness under oath

in the courtroom is HEARSAY, although about 14

exceptions apply.

One of those exceptions would be if the speaker

is a party in the lawsuit, specifically a party

opponent. If the client has not sued the brake

company (no sane lawyer would fail to sue

everyone involved if he could manage to do do),

then yes it is hearsay. But if the brake company

is a defendant in the lawsuit, then it is an

"admission" which is an exception to hearsay.

Any evidence is admissible unless (a) it is not

sufficiently relevant or (b) there is a specific

rule prohibiting it. (A document needs to be

sponsored into evidence by a witness, however.)

So, the question is whether there is a rule

prohibiting the use of the letter.

Your question about whether it is an admission

of guilt is not susceptible of a standard answer.

That is a subjective evaluation. What exactly

does it say? The judge or jury would have to

decide that for themselves.

However, take a look at:

HB 289 Admission of liability; expressions of sympathy are inadmissible as evidence in any civil action.

M. Kirkland Cox

Admissibility of expressions of sympathy. States that expressions of sympathy are inadmissible in any civil action if they are made to the injured party or a family member. Current law provides that such expressions are inadmissible in wrongful death and medical malpractice cases only.

Full text:

01/04/06 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/06 064326284

Status:

01/04/06 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/06 064326284

01/04/06 House: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice

01/18/06 House: Assigned to Courts of Justice sub-committee: Civil Law ...

01/23/06 House: Failed to report (defeated) in Courts of Justice (10-Y 10-N)

Re: Letter of apology admission of fault

I suggest you research the caselaw concerning this issue to find your answer rather than merely asking what the answer is.

Re: Letter of apology admission of fault

This forum is designed to address real cases and issues put forward by laypersons who may not have ready and/or easy access to an attorney.

It is not meant to explore the "what ifs" in the law or other scenarios posited by law school professors or related folks whose purpose is essentially didactic and expositional for the benefit of law students.