The Admissibility of Hearsay Evidence With Reference To The Malaysian Evidence Act 1950

There is no uniform international definition over the word evidence. Every country legal system has their understanding over the term evidence. The Malaysian Evidence Act 1950 [Act 56] which is the prime source on law of evidence also does not provides clear definition over the term evidence besides stating or providing the composition or types of evidence. Generally, the term evidence can be defined or understood as anything that a person see, experience, read, or are told that causes such person to believe that something is true or has really happened. When evidence brought forward to the court of law in order to support or deny allegation, evidence can includes documentary evidence, oral evidence, physical evidence, and others. The submission of evidence is very important to build up a case in any judicial proceeding whether in criminal or civil proceeding. Submission of strong evidence is also important to support issues in any proceedings which is does not judicial in nature like in an inquiry or a tribunal. Hearsay evidence is one of pieces of evidence. When we talk about strong evidence, hardly it includes hearsay evidence. Hearsay evidence is an out of court statement which being offered in court in order to prove the truth of the matter asserted therein. Hearsay evidence can fall into several types and it is not strong. It is the fundamental principle of law and justice that every allegation must be supported with strong and convincing evidence. Having a good and reliable piece of evidence to support any allegation is important in order to bring justice and fairness to every parties in a dispute. The status of hearsay evidence has been known widely in the judicial community all over the world including in Malaysia as a bad piece of evidence. Due to its bad status, generally such piece of evidence cannot be used in any court proceedings unless it fall under certain exceptions and fulfill certain strict requirements. As such, it is the object of this paper to examine further on the definition of hearsay evidence and the admissibility of such evidence in court proceedings with reference to selected jurisdictions and with reference to the position taken by the Malaysian court and the Malaysian Evidence Act 1950 [Act 56].