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N.D.R.Ev. 601

Not legal advice. Verify against official sources before relying on this text in any legal matter.

Rule 601 Competency to Testify in General

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Rule Text

Every person is competent to be a witness unless these rules provide otherwise.

Amendment history: (Adopted Apr. 8, 1976; amended Mar. 1, 2014.)

Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)

This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.

Anyone can testify as a witness in a North Dakota court case. There's no automatic ban based on things like age, mental condition, or a criminal record. The law starts from the assumption that people are allowed to take the stand and share what they know.

This general rule only gives way if another specific rule says otherwise. So unless some other rule spells out a reason someone can't testify, that person is allowed to be a witness. This keeps the door open for most people to share testimony, letting judges and juries decide how much weight to give what each witness says.

Committee Notes

Rule 601 was amended, effective March 1, 2014.

The essential thought underlying this rule is that, generally, the evaluation of a witness should be made by the trier of fact, through a determination of the weight and credibility of that witness' testimony, rather than by the prior imposition of standards of competency. Thus, there are no standards put forth relating to mental or moral competency in these rules.

Rule 601 was amended, effective March 1, 2014, in response to the December 1, 2011, revision of the Federal Rules of Evidence. The language and organization of the rule were changed to make the rule more easily understood and to make style and terminology consistent throughout the rules. There is no intent to change any result in any ruling on evidence admissibility.

SOURCES: Joint Procedure Committee Minutes of April 26-27, 2012, pages 21-22; April 8, 1976, page 26. Fed.R.Ev. 601; Rule 601, SBAND proposal.

STATUTES AFFECTED:

SUPERSEDED: N.D.C.C. §§ 31-01-01, 31-01-03, 31-01-04, 31-01-05.

CROSS REFERENCE: N.D.R.Ev. 501 (Privilege in General).

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