Judicial Notice, Evidence

When presenting evidence at trial or at a hearing, “judicial notice” may be utilized to set forth a fact “which is common knowledge of people of ordinary intelligence” and “which can be reliably determined by resort to a readily available, accurate and credible source.” State v. Weber, 814 S.W.2d 298, 303 (Mo. Ct. App. 1991).

By way of example, judicial notice would likely be permissible to demonstrate that a particular day of a week fell on a specific day of the month. It is also commonly utilized to establish party filings in a case file in litigation.

Importantly, the “notoriety of the fact to be noticed” is the key part of determining whether to permit judicial notice. Hammon v. Missouri Prop. Ins. Placement Facility, 731 S.W.2d 360, 367 (Mo. Ct. App. 1987). If there is any doubt about the notoriety of a fact, judicial notice should be declined. Gordon v. Gordon, 739 S.W.2d 728, 730 (Mo. Ct. App. 1987).

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