Unfair prejudice means an undue tendency to suggest decision on an improper basis, commonly an emotional one. All damaging evidence is prejudicial, but only evidence inviting improper reasoning is unfairly so.
It is the most commonly asserted Rule 403 ground.
Alternative Names:
Undue Prejudice|Prejudicial Effect
Why it Matters?
The distinction between damaging and unfairly prejudicial is what most 403 arguments fail to make, since evidence that hurts a party is not excludable merely because it hurts. Articulating the specific improper inference the jury would draw is what makes the objection persuasive. Graphic injury photographs, financial condition evidence, and prior bad acts are the categories where the argument most often succeeds.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
What distinguishes damaging from unfairly prejudicial?
What makes the objection persuasive?
