Relevancy in Evidence

Two kinds of fact are very important in the Law of Evidence. They are facts in issue and relevant facts. The concept of facts in issue has been dealt with by several authors and jurists. However, it is necessary to discuss it here because it has a very interesting relationship with relevant facts. Think of the relationship between facts in issue and relevant facts as that which exists between baking a plain cake and baking a chocolate cake. Yeah. This sounds weird. But stay with me.

If you’re going to bake a beans cake (akara), there are some ingredients that are absolutely necessary. You can’t bake a beans cake (akara) without beans. If there are no beans, you aren’t baking anything. Think of beans as your facts in issue.

Ordinarily, you don’t need vanilla to prepare an ice cream. If all you wanted was a plain ice-cream or a chocolate ice-cream, you have no business with vanilla. However, if you’re making a vanilla ice-cream, you quite simply must have vanilla. Otherwise, it’s not a vanilla ice-cream. This is exactly how relevant facts operate.