Former Minister of Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo has schooled Nigerians on the admissibility of documents during court proceedings.
Keyamo warned that admission of a document by a court of law does not necessarily mean that the court accepts its content.
The former minister stated this amidst a report from the European Union labelling him a perpetrator of fake news.
Speaking via Twitter, Keyamo warned those who know nothing about legal processes that documents admitted during legal proceedings could be expunged at the stage of judgment.
He stated that it was paramount that he explains the process so that legal illiterates would not suffer heart attacks if things do not turn out the way they want.
He wrote, “Can someone please calmly and kindly explain to those who know nothing about legal processes and are getting over-excited over nothing that:
“Admission of a document by a court of law is not necessarily an acceptance of its contents as no weight may be attached to the document at the end of the day;
“That there was an agreement between all counsel to let all documents be admitted in evidence (even when there are objections) pending when arguments as to the objections regarding admissibility would be taken at the stage of address before final judgment.
“Hence, documents admitted during proceedings can be expunged at the stage of judgment if they are found to have been inadmissible in the first place.
“It is important to give these clarifications so that legal illiterates will not suffer heart attacks if they find out that the so-called documents upon which they are pinning all their hopes are jettisoned at the end of the day for lack of probative value or for being inadmissible. I am not saying this will be the case. I am only saying that it is a POSSIBILITY in law. Nothing is ‘slam dunk’ because a document is ‘admitted’ at this stage.”
