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Facts relevant: The Fact that on the way to the hearing of Tonya Rape Case, right outside the

courtroom, the father of the black girl, Carl Hailey, steps out of a closet and fires 3 shots Two

shots kill the two white males and the other shot wounds the officer escorting the convicts in to

the courtroom

Issue: Do they qualify to be ‘fact’ within the meaning of section 3?

Facts include the factum probandum or the principle fact to be proved and the factum probans or

the evidentiary fact from which the principle fact follows immediately or by inference. Facts

may be either ‘facts in issue’ which are the principal matters in dispute or relevant facts which

are evidentiary and which directly or by inference prove or disprove the facts in issue. 1 Mental

condition is a fact but any guess or calculation made by a person is not a fact. 2

The distinction between facts in issue and relevant facts is of fundamental importance and must

be thoroughly comprehended in order to understand and appreciate the scheme of the Act. ir

!ames Fit"#ames tephen$ who framed the Act$ in his %ntroduction to the Act thus defines facts in

issue&'(They may by themselves$ or in connection with other facts$ constitute such a state of

things that the e)istence of the disputed right or liability would be a legal inference from them.

From the fact that A is the eldest son of B, there arises of necessity the inference that A is$ by the

law of *ngland$ the heir'at'law of B$ and that he has such rights as that status involves. From the

fact that A caused the death of + under certain circumstances and with a certain intention or

,nowledge there arises of necessity the inference that A murdered B$ and is liable to the

punishment provided by law for murder. Facts thus related to a proceeding may be called facts in

issue unless their e)istence is undisputed. -

The definition of facts in issue in the Act is merely a paraphrase of tephen s definition in the

%ntroduction. The substantive law of a country defines the rights and liabilities of its citi"ens in

the form of certain abstract propositions or formulae$ and the ob#ect of every suit or other #udicial

1 tate v. Arisetty$ A%/ 10 A3 1-4

2 Anant v. tate$ A%/ 105 +om 140

- tephen s %ntroduction$ p. 12

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proceedings is to ascertain whether the right claimed$ or the liability sought to be enforced by

one person against another$ does or does not e)ist. A party to a litigation see,ing to enforce a

right or a liability against his opponent$ in order to obtain a verdict in his favor by a tribunal$ has

to establish all such facts as go to constitute that right or liability. These (necessary constituents(

of a right or liability are called (facts in issue( if their e)istence is asserted by one party and is

denied by the other. %n$ other words$ every fact which a plaintiff must prove in order to get

ad#udication in his favour$ or which a defendant may prove in order to defeat the plaintiff s suit$

becomes a fact in issue$ if the parties are not agreed as to its e)istence or non'e)istence.

Therefore the answer to the 6uestion what are the facts in issue in a particular case depends on

the rule of the substantive law which is applicable to the case and on that rule of procedure which

deals with the framing of issues of fact. 7

%n criminal cases there are no such facts as constitute the offence$ their non'e)istence being

presumed. 8ence all the ingredients of the offence which is charged against the accused are

(facts in issue( in a criminal trial the substantive civil law of %ndia has not yet been completely

codified. %t is contained partly in some of the legislative enactment s$ e.g.$ the Transfer of

3roperty Act and the %ndian 9ontract Act partly in rules of 8indu and Mohammedan :aws$ and

partly in rules of custom by which the parties are governed; and where there is no e)press

provision on the point in any of these$ the !udge has to decide according to the dictates of #ustice$

e6uity and good conscience.