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Module 4 (2 of 3) - AWARD WRITING - Important points to note - Coggle…

- - - - What standard of proof is required?
        
        The balance of probabilities in all civil proceedings subject to English Law
        
        A civil standard – balance of probabilities – is different. If a person trips and falls at a shopping centre, and they sue the shopping centre for negligence, then the case is between two legal persons. One person decides to sue the other. Even if one has more resources than the other, the law perceives them to be on equal footing.
        In a civil dispute, each side has to build their case. Each side has to produce evidence. And the court has to decide which side is right. The plaintiff doesn’t have to prove their case beyond reasonable doubt, but it has to be more likely than not that their position is made out. But in this case, nobody’s liberty is at stake.
        
        However, it is right and it is reasonable that Arbitrators should subject a contention that a party has been guilty of fraud to a more rigorous test than they would apply to other issues.
        
        Beyond all reasonable doubt is the criminal standard
        
        Requiring the state to prove their case beyond reasonable doubt is an important protection for an accused person. It means that a jury or a magistrate must be certain that the person committed the crime before they can find them guilty. A person cannot be found guilty if it is probable or likely or seems reasonable that they committed the offence. If there is any reasonable niggle of uncertainty— a reasonable possibility of a doubt — then the person must be acquitted.