Title 24

When evidence which is admissible as to one party or for one purpose but which is not admissible as to another party or for another purpose is admitted, the court, upon request, shall restrict the evidence to its proper scope and instruct the jury accordingly. History. Code 1981,…

When a writing or recorded statement or part thereof is introduced by a party, an adverse party may require the introduction at that time of any other part or any other writing or recorded statement which, in fairness, should be considered contemporaneously with the writing or re…

(a) This Code section governs only judicial notice of adjudicative facts. (b) A judicially noticed fact shall be a fact which is not subject to reasonable dispute in that it is either: (1) Generally known within the territorial jurisdiction of the court; or (2) Capable of accurat…

The existence and territorial extent of states and their forms of government; all symbols of nationality; the laws of nations; all laws and resolutions of the General Assembly and the journals of each branch thereof as published by authority; the laws of the United States and of …

When certified by a public officer, clerk, or keeper of county or municipal records in this state in a manner as specified for county records in Code Section 24-9-920 or in a manner as specified for municipal records in paragraph (1) or (2) of Code Section 24-9-902 and in the absenc…

State, 221 Ga. App. 436, 472 S.E.2d 1 (decided under former O.C.G.A. § 24-2-3). Evidence that a child rape victim had sex with her boyfriend six months before the alleged rape was properly excluded since, while relevant to show that the victim’s pregnancy was not caused by the de…

Parol contemporaneous evidence shall be generally inadmissible to contradict or vary the terms of a valid written instrument. History. Code 1981, § 24-3-1, enacted by Ga. L. 2011, p. 99, § 2/HB 24.

NEWSPAPERS. Journalists. Qualified privilege. Disclosure of information in gathering news, §24-5-508. Privileged communications. Qualified privilege. Disclosure of information in gathering news, §24-5-508. NONRESIDENTS. Lost or destroyed records. Bond, bill, note, draft, check. Est…

State, 194 Ga. App. 714, 391 S.E.2d 790, 1990 Ga. App. LEXIS 319 (1990) (decided under former O.C.G.A. § 24-3-16). Child was considered “available to testify” under former O.C.G.A. § 24-3-16 only if the child was “competent” to testify within the meaning of former O.C.G.A. § 24-9…

Hann v. State, 292 Ga. App. 719, 665 S.E.2d 731, 2008 Ga. App. LEXIS 851 (2008) (decided under former O.C.G.A. § 24-3-17). Insufficient foundation for admission of evidence. — Testimony of an employee of the county solicitor’s (now district attorney) office that the employee had …

If the writing does not purport to contain all the stipulations of the contract, parol evidence shall be admissible to prove other portions thereof not inconsistent with the writing; collateral undertakings between parties of the same part among themselves would not properly be l…

State, 314 Ga. App. 170, 723 S.E.2d 486, 2012 Ga. App. LEXIS 143 (2012) (decided under former O.C.G.A. § 24-3-3). When the victim’s statements were derived solely from his or her personal observations, were made within minutes of the crime, and were free of all suspicion, the vic…

The surrounding circumstances shall always be proper subjects of proof to aid in the construction of contracts. History. Code 1981, § 24-3-4, enacted by Ga. L. 2011, p. 99, § 2/HB 24.

Actions. Admissibility of criminal history record information, §24-4-419. Criminal background checks for employees of department. Admissibility of criminal history record information in employment actions, §24-4-419. LANDLORD AND TENANT. Estoppels. Landlord’s title as against ten…

Hall, 527 F.3d 1162, 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 10433 (11th Cir. 2008), cert. denied, 555 U.S. 1183, 129 S. Ct. 1336, 173 L. Ed. 2d 607, 2009 U.S. LEXIS 1348 (2009) (decided under former O.C.G.A. § 24-3-50). Defendant’s statements to a local detective regarding the defendant’s role in …

Parol evidence shall be admissible to rebut an equity, to discharge an entire contract, to prove a new and distinct subsequent agreement, to enlarge the time of performance, or to change the place of performance. History. Code 1981, § 24-3-6, enacted by Ga. L. 2011, p. 99, § 2/HB…

Parol evidence shall be admissible to prove a mistake in a deed or any other contract required by law to be in writing. History. Code 1981, § 24-3-7, enacted by Ga. L. 2011, p. 99, § 2/HB 24.

Parol evidence shall be admissible to show that a writing either was originally void or subsequently became void. History. Code 1981, § 24-3-8, enacted by Ga. L. 2011, p. 99, § 2/HB 24.

PERJURY. Evidence. Guilty plea later withdrawn, plea of nolo contendere, plea discussions. When admissible, §24-4-410. Single witness testimony insufficient, exception, §24-14-8. PERPETUATION OF TESTIMONY, §§24-13-150 to 24-13-154. All parties not ascertained or reached. Proceedi…

As used in this chapter, the term “relevant evidence” means evidence having any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence. History. Code 1981, § 24-4-40…

All relevant evidence shall be admissible, except as limited by constitutional requirements or as otherwise provided by law or by other rules, as prescribed pursuant to constitutional or statutory authority, applicable in the court in which the matter is pending. Evidence which i…

Substitution of duplicates, §24-13-7. Witnesses. Accused wishing to testify, §24-5-506. Arrest. Privilege from. Uniform act to secure attendance of witnesses from without state, §24-13-96. While attending court, going to or from court, §24-13-1. EVIDENCE —Cont’d Witnesses —Cont’d…

(a) Evidence of a person’s character or a trait of character shall not be admissible for the purpose of proving action in conformity therewith on a particular occasion, except for: (1) Evidence of a pertinent trait of character offered by an accused or by the prosecution to rebut…

(a) In all proceedings in which evidence of character or a trait of character of a person is admissible, proof shall be made by testimony as to reputation or by testimony in the form of an opinion. (b) In proceedings in which character or a trait of character of a person is an es…

Evidence of the habit of a person or of the routine practice of an organization, whether corroborated or not and regardless of the presence of eyewitnesses, is relevant to prove that the conduct of the person or organization on a particular occasion was in conformity with such ha…

In civil proceedings, when, after an injury or harm, remedial measures are taken to make such injury or harm less likely to recur, evidence of the remedial measures shall not be admissible to prove negligence or culpable conduct but may be admissible to prove product liability un…

(a) Except as provided in Code Section 9-11-68, evidence of: (1) Furnishing, offering, or promising to furnish; or (2) Accepting, offering, or promising to accept a valuable consideration in compromising or attempting to compromise a claim which was disputed as to either validity…

Confidential or privileged information. AIDS confidential information, §§24-12-20, 24-12-21. Disclosure of medical matters, §§24-12-10 to 24-12-14. Confidential or privileged character not destroyed by disclosure, §24-12-11. INDEX EVIDENCE —Cont’d Medical information —Cont’d Confiden…

Except as otherwise provided by law, evidence of the following shall not, in any judicial or administrative proceeding, be admissible against the criminal defendant who made the plea or was a participant in the plea discussions: (1) A plea of guilty which was later withdrawn; (2)…

In all civil proceedings involving a claim for damages, evidence that a person was or was not insured against liability shall not be admissible except as provided in this Code section. This Code section shall not require the exclusion of evidence of insurance against liability in…

(a) In any prosecution for rape in violation of Code Section 16-6-1; aggravated assault with the intent to rape in violation of Code Section 16-5-21; trafficking persons for labor servitude or sexual servitude in violation of Code Section 16-5-46; aggravated sodomy or sodomy in v…

(a) In a criminal proceeding in which the accused is accused of an offense of sexual assault, evidence of the accused’s commission of another offense of sexual assault shall be admissible and may be considered for its bearing on any matter to which it is relevant. (b) In a procee…

(a) In a criminal proceeding in which the accused is accused of an offense of child molestation, evidence of the accused’s commission of another offense of child molestation shall be admissible and may be considered for its bearing on any matter to which it is relevant. (b) In a …

(a) In a civil or administrative proceeding in which a claim for damages or other relief is predicated on a party’s alleged commission of conduct constituting an offense of sexual assault or an offense of child molestation, evidence of that party’s commission of another offense o…

(a) As used in this Code section, the term “health care provider” means any person licensed under Chapter 9, 10A, 11, 11A, 26, 28, 30, 33, 34, 35, 39, or 44 of Title 43 or any hospital, nursing home, home health agency, institution, or medical facility licensed or defined under Ch…

(a) In a criminal proceeding involving a prosecution for a violation of Code Section 40-6-391, evidence of the commission of another violation of Code Section 40-6-391 on a different occasion by the same accused shall be admissible when: (1) The accused refused in the current cas…

(a) In a criminal proceeding in which the accused is accused of conducting or participating in criminal gang activity in violation of Code Section 16-15-4, evidence of the accused’s commission of criminal gang activity, as such term is defined in Code Section 16-15-3, shall be adm…

(a) As used in this Code section, the term “criminal history record information” shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code Section 35-3-30. (b) In a civil proceeding against an employer, its employees, or its agents based on the conduct of an employee or former employee, c…

State, 212 Ga. App. 278, 442 S.E.2d 462, 1994 Ga. App. LEXIS 239 (1994) (decided under former O.C.G.A. § 24-4-6). Only when evidence is wholly circumstantial is substance of former O.C.G.A. § 24-4-6 required to be given in charge, and when there was direct evidence, as well as ci…

State, 251 Ga. 521, 307 S.E.2d 496, 1983 Ga. LEXIS 897 (1983) (decided under former O.C.G.A. § 24-4-8). Accomplice is one who acts as result of free will and not of duress or coercion. Milton v. State, 248 Ga. 192, 282 S.E.2d 90, 1981 Ga. LEXIS 955 (1981) (decided under former O.…

— Attack on the constitutionality of this statute, on the ground that the Act from which this statute was codified was broader than the Act’s title, was without merit. Ashburn v. Spirey, 112 Ga. 474, 37 S.E. 703 (1900) (see O.C.G.A. § 44-2-12). rization for rerecorded deeds to ha…

(a) There are certain admissions and communications excluded from evidence on grounds of public policy, including, but not limited to, the following: (1) Communications between husband and wife; (2) Communications between attorney and client; (3) Communications among grand jurors…

Every communication made by any person professing religious faith, seeking spiritual comfort, or seeking counseling to any Protestant minister of the Gospel, any priest of the Roman Catholic faith, any priest of the Greek Orthodox Catholic faith, any Jewish rabbi, or any Christia…

(a) A husband and wife shall be competent but shall not be compellable to give evidence in any criminal proceeding for or against each other. (b) The privilege created by subsection (a) of this Code section or by corresponding privileges in paragraph (1) of subsection (a) of Code…

Any law enforcement officer or nonsworn employee of a law enforcement agency testifying in his or her official capacity in any criminal proceeding shall not be compelled to reveal his or her home address. Such officer or employee may be required to divulge the business address of…

(a) No party or witness shall be required to testify as to any matter which may incriminate or tend to incriminate such party or witness or which shall tend to bring infamy, disgrace, or public contempt upon such party or witness or any member of such party or witness’s family. (…