Evidence Code § 1160 – Admissibility of Benevolent Gestures in Civil Actions
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Evidence Code § 1160 – Admissibility of Benevolent Gestures in Civil Actions
California Law
Evidence Code – EVID
DIVISION 9. EVIDENCE AFFECTED OR EXCLUDED BY EXTRINSIC POLICIES [1100 – 1162]
( Division 9 enacted by Stats. 1965, Ch. 299. )CHAPTER 3. Other Evidence Affected or Excluded by Extrinsic Policies [1150 – 1162]
( Heading of Chapter 3 renumbered from Chapter 2 by Stats. 1997, Ch. 772, Sec. 4. )1160.
(a) The portion of statements, writings, or benevolent gestures expressing sympathy or a general sense of benevolence relating to the pain, suffering, or death of a person involved in an accident and made to that person or to the family of that person shall be inadmissible as evidence of an admission of liability in a civil action. A statement of fault, however, which is part of, or in addition to, any of the above shall not be inadmissible pursuant to this section.
(b) For purposes of this section:
(1) “Accident” means an occurrence resulting in injury or death to one or more persons which is not the result of willful action by a party.
(2) “Benevolent gestures” means actions which convey a sense of compassion or commiseration emanating from humane impulses.
(3) “Family” means the spouse, parent, grandparent, stepmother, stepfather, child, grandchild, brother, sister, half brother, half sister, adopted children of parent, or spouse’s parents of an injured party.
(Added by Stats. 2000, Ch. 195, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 2001.)
California Law Summary
This statute protects expressions of sympathy or benevolence made after an accident from being used as evidence of liability in civil cases. Specifically, it states that statements expressing sympathy, compassion, or commiseration regarding:
Pain,
Suffering,
Or death of a person involved in an accident,
are inadmissible to prove fault or liability.
While sympathetic statements are protected, any factual admissions (e.g., “It was my fault”) made in the same statement can still be admitted as evidence.
Purpose
To allow individuals to express human concern and compassion following an accident without fear of legal repercussions from those expressions.
Application
In personal injury claims, § 1160 helps preserve the emotional integrity of post-accident interactions while drawing a legal line between empathy and admission of fault. Attorneys must carefully distinguish between the two when evaluating post-incident communications.
