Summary

In essence, an action is an adversarial procedure. According to Subsection 5 (2) of the Code of Civil Procedure, a party may choose the facts submitted in order to substantiate the claim thereof as well as the evidence intended for proof of such facts. According to Subsection 230 (1) of the code of Civil Procedure, each party shall prove the facts on which their claims and objections are based. In order to take account of personal evidence, Subsection 229 (2) of the Code of Civil Procedure provides for two possible procedural forms: the testimony of a witness, and statements of participants in proceedings given under oath. The testimony of a witness and the statements of participants in proceedings are evidence which the participant in the proceedings cannot itself provide; accordingly, based on Subsection 236 (2) of the Code of Civil Procedure, they must request the taking of the evidence by the court. Since, according to Subsection 269 (1) of the Code of Civil Procedure, the provisions concerning hearing of witnesses correspondingly apply to hearing of participants in proceeding under oath, this article focuses on the issues related to the hearing of witnesses; however, the article also extends to the hearing of the participants in the proceedings under oath. The article views the questions relating to the hearing of witnesses, from the request of hearing to the minutes of the testimony and includes reflections for the harmonisation and possible alteration of the practice relating to the hearing of witnesses.