ABSTRACT
Section 91 of the Evidence Acts states the general rule that evidence of a decision or a finding of fact in an Australian or overseas court case is not admissible to prove the existence of the fact that was in issue in that case. It supports the rule in Hollington v Hewthorn (1943), where a conviction of a defendant for careless driving was held inadmissible in subsequent civil proceedings for damages brought against the defendant and his employer. If such evidence is admitted for some other purpose than to prove the existence of a particular fact, the evidence cannot be used to prove the existence of that fact. This latter position should be contrasted with s 60, which provides, in effect, that hearsay evidence admitted for a nonhearsay purpose is admissible then for the hearsay purpose despite s 59, and with s 77 in relation to the opinion rule.
