Question

What do you mean by presumption in civil actions and proceedings

Answer 1

In civil actions and proceedings, "presumption" refers to a legal inference or assumption that a court is required to make regarding a fact or set of facts, unless and until that presumption is rebutted (or countered) by evidence to the contrary. Presumptions can help streamline legal proceedings by providing a baseline understanding of facts under certain conditions.

There are two main types of presumptions in civil law:

1. **Rebuttable Presumptions**: These are assumptions that can be challenged and overturned by presenting contrary evidence. For example, a presumption of innocence in criminal law means that the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty; in civil law, there might be presumptions related to the burden of proof in negligence cases.

2. **Irrebuttable (or conclusive) Presumptions**: These are more rigid and cannot be contested or overcome by evidence. An example might be a legal presumption that a child under a certain age cannot form the intent necessary to commit a crime.

Presumptions can arise from statutes, case law, or common practice and often serve to balance the interests of justice, efficiency in legal proceedings, and the burden of proof in civil disputes.