A comprehensive course in the law that controls the admissibility of evidence in the trial of civil and criminal cases. The Federal Rules of Evidence are addressed extensively, although not at the expense of adequate treatment of state law. The following specific areas are addressed: (1) testimonial qualifications of witnesses; (2) relevancy; (3) lay and expert opinion; (4) credibility of witnesses; (5) direct and circumstantial evidence; (6) the hearsay doctrine; (7) the best evidence rule; (8) the requirements of authentication; (9) the preservation of errors for appellate review; (10) evidentiary privileges; and (11) burden of proof and presumptions.