Rules of Evidence in the Philippines

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A. Sources of the Rules

1. The Principal Source: Rules 128 to Rule 133 of the Revised Rules of
Court
a). Origin: The rules are patterned and based on the rules of evidence as developed,
applied and interpreted in the English and American Courts. Thus the rules on the
disqualification of witnesses are pattered from the rules applied in the State of
California. Our rules concerning confessions are patterned after American rules

b). Decisions of the English and American Courts, as well as opinions and works of
English and American jurists, such as Wigmore, Clark, Jones, and others, are given
great weight

2. The Philippine constitution particularly, its provisions on the Bill of

Rights and the Article on the Supreme Court

3. Special Laws passed by Congress which either create, amend or

supplement existing rules of evidence. The most recent include (i) The
Electronic Evidence Act and the (ii) The Child Witness Law

4. Decisions of the Supreme Court

5. Circulars issued by the Supreme Court

B. Power to Prescribe Rules of Evidence

1. The power is essentially legislative in that it is Congress which can enact laws
concerning the presentation, admissibility, and weight of evidence. However the
Supreme Court is not precluded from issuing adopting circulars and rules concerning
the rules of evidence

2. New laws maybe issued under the Principle that “ No person has a vested right in the
rules of evidence”. Parties to a pending case can not demand that a new rule of
evidence should not apply to them because it will be adverse to their cause. Rules of
evidence may be altered or repelled at anytime and will apply to pending cases even if
the effect is adverse to a party therein. The exceptions are rules which partake of the
nature of Ex post facto laws or Bills of Attainder.
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C. Stipulation and Waiver of a Rule of Evidence
1. Generally parties cannot, either by agreement or by contract, stipulate what rules
shall be binding upon the Court. But the parties may however stipulate on the effects of
certain types of evidence on their contractual rights as long as the jurisdiction of the
court is not affected

2. As to waiver:

a). Rules intended for the protection of the parties maybe waived Examples: Rules on
the Disqualification of Witnesses, the Privileged Communication Rule, The Best
Evidence Rule

b). Rules grounded on public policy can not be waived. Examples: The Rule on the
Identity of State Secrets; the rule on the inadmissibility of Coerced Confessions and
evidence resulting from illegal searches and seizures; the 2 witness rule on
treason

D. Classification of the Rules of Evidence

1. Rules of Probative Policy. These are rules the purposes of which is to improve the
probative value of the evidence offered

a). Exclusionary Rules- those that exclude certain kinds of evidence on the grounds of
policy and relevancy. Example: the rule that character evidence is not admissible in civil
cases; the rule disqualifying certain persons from being witnesses.

b). Preferential Rules- those which require one kind of evidence in preference to any
other in that they are more trustworthy. Example: the rule which require that the
original of a document is preferred over any other as proof of the contents of a
document

c). Analytical rules- those that subject certain kinds of evidence to rigid scrutiny, so as
to expose their possible weaknesses and shortcomings. Examples: the rules which
require that testimonial evidence be subjected to the opportunity for cross-examination

d). Prophylactic rules- those that apply beforehand certain measures to prevent risk,
falsity or mistake. Examples: the rules which require that witnesses be placed under
oath; the rules on the separation and exclusion of witnesses

e). Quantitative Rules- the rules that require certain kinds of evidence to be produced in
specific quantity, or that certain evidence be required to be associated with other
evidence when presented. Examples: the 2-witness rule in the crime of treason; the rule
which require that an extra judicial confession be corroborated by evidence of corpus
delicti; that the testimony of a state witness be corroborated in its material points.

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2. Rules of Extrinsic Policy- these are rules which seek to exclude useful evidence for the
sake of up holding other policies considered more paramount. They may either be
absolute or conditional.

Examples: The Exclusionary Provisions of the Constitution; the Anti Wire Tapping Law.

E. Interpretation: The rules are to be liberally construed and hair-splitting technicalities

are to be avoided

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