OPINION EVIDENCE

See generally sections 57-65 of the Evidence Act. Opinion refers to a person's feeling, thoughts, beliefs and views about a fact in issue see Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary, 7^th edition page 1024. The word opinion has also been defined by the same dictionary as 'a belief not based on certainty or knowledge but on what seems to be true or probable.' It is a product of the exercise of personal judgment, personal evaluation and personal estimation. As a general rule therefore, the fact that any person is of the opinion that a fact in issue or a fact relevant to the fact in issue does or does not exist is irrelevant to the existence of such fact. See Section 66 of the Evidence Act. It is of particular interest to note that where a matter does not call for expertise, evidence of opinion is generally excluded. An old case of R v. Loake (1911) will explain the exclusion of opinion evidence better. In that case, the defense counsel sought the leave of the court of appeal to call fresh evidence in support of the accused plea of insanity by calling the following witnesses: a friend of the accused who saw him three days before the crime was committed and formed the opinion that he was insane, a magistrate who had expressed a similar opinion about the accused's state of mind when he visited him in the prison.

Exceptions to the general rule

There are two broad categories of exceptions recognized by the Evidence Act namely:

1. Opinion of experts
2. Opinion of non-experts

OPINION OF EXPERTS

Experts are those with special knowledge of the subject matter about which he is to testify. Such knowledge is not normally possessed by an average person. They are those specially skilled in matters of foreign law, native law or custom, science or art, identity of handwriting or finger impression etc. The knowledge may be acquired either from study and education or from experience and practice. Where the court accepts a witness as an expert on a fact in issue, the opinion of such a witness becomes admissible. Section 57(1) of the Evidence Act provides as follows: