EVIDENCE LAW — Evaluation of Evidence — Use of ‘I Believe’ — Permissible for Recent Facts
Ratio Decidendi
Per Tobi, JSC, in Salawu & Anor v. Yusuf & Ors (2007) NLC-123-107-2002(SC) at p. 20; Paras B–D:
"The learned trial judge used the expression 'I believe' in the course of his evaluation of facts of recent years and I know of no law which says he cannot do so. What the learned trial judge believed was not the traditional evidence but the testimonies as they relate to the acts within recent memory which the witnesses said they saw and partook."
Explanation / Scope
A trial judge may use the expression “I believe” when evaluating evidence of recent facts within living memory. This is permissible as it relates to testimonies about acts witnesses saw and participated in. The court should not be overly technical about the language used in judgment writing.