Value Conflicts in the Law of Evidence

Abstract

The law of evidence involves the courts in conflicts of abstract values, such as "due process" with "substantive justice," and conflicts between society and institu tions. The larger "objective" truth is sometimes subordinated to the social values placed by the courts and law upon familial and professional-client relations. Although the law of evidence has been increasingly rationalized over the past thousand years into some thing resembling the rules for seeking scientific truth, group functions and rights have been developing apace. The author is associated with Bell Telephone Laboratories at Murray Hill, New Jersey.