Document Type

Working Paper

Publication Date

1-11-2018

SSRN Discipline

LSN Subject Matter eJournals; Constitutional Law, Jurisprudence & Legal Philosophy eJournals; Legal Scholarship Network; PRN Subject Matter eJournals; Criminal Law & Procedure eJournals; Philosophy Research Network; Law School Research Papers - Legal Studies; Law & Society eJournals; Law & Society: Public Law eJournals; AARN Subject Matter eJournals; Humanities Network; Political Science Network; Anthropology & Archaeology Research Network

Abstract

This article defends the importance of epistemic safety for legal evidence Drawing on discussions of sensitivity and safety in epistemology the article explores how similar considerations apply to legal proof In the legal context sensitivity concerns whether a factual finding would be made if it were false and safety concerns how easily a factual finding could be false The article critiques recent claims about the importance of sensitivity for the law of evidence In particular this critique argues that sensitivity does not have much of an effect on the value of legal evidence and that it fails to explain legal doctrine By contrast safety affects the quality of legal evidence and safety explains central features of the law of evidence including probative value admissibility rules and standards of proof

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