Rule 11-405 Methods of proving character.

When someone's character comes up in a court case, there are limited ways to actually prove it. Most of the time, a witness can only talk about the person's general reputation or give their own opinion about that person's character. For example, a witness might say "people in the community know him as an honest person" or "in my opinion, she is a truthful person."

If a witness testifies about someone's character this way, the other side gets a chance to test that testimony on cross-examination. The lawyer can ask the witness about specific things the person did, especially if those actions don't match up with the reputation or opinion the witness described.

There's one situation where specific examples of a person's actions can come in directly, not just during cross-examination. This happens when the person's character is actually part of what needs to be proven in the case. For instance, if a legal claim requires showing someone was careless or dishonest as a central part of the case, then specific examples of their conduct can be used as direct evidence, not just to challenge a witness's opinion.