Examination Of Expert' Opinion: Relevancy, Admissibility, And The Framework

INTRODUCTION:

Judiciary aspires to reach a comprehensive, unambiguous, just, and fair conclusion in a matter with the help of evidence before it.¹ Sometime, courts/arbitral tribunals are unable to assess certain evidence due to its technicalities. Therefore, expert evidence comes for judicial assistance. Initially, the Courts restricted the assistance of experts in limited fields like medical doctors, engineers, stockbrokers etc. However, the need of expert opinion increased with the vast development in science and technology, and the role of experts has been widened. Whenever the Court/arbitral tribunal requires forming an opinion on technical issues related to foreign law/science/art, the Court can ask expert's unbiased and scientific opinion on technical issues related to foreign law/science/art, on which the court is unlikely to² form correct opinion. No specific definition of Expert Evidence could be traced in Indian Evidence Act, 1872. Expert is understood as