Normally you would find me writing about law on http://ukimmigrationattendancecards.com/. However, I have become transformed into a stonemason since the collapse of Covid-19, and I cannot think of anything better than presenting the following from my knowledge of evidence law on a live drafting matter: Extrinsic Evidence in Evidence Law. This article will give you some understanding of what is extrinsic evidence in evidence law with references to the statute law and some case law also. Extrinsic evidence means evidence that is outside the terms/words of a document. Extrinsic evidence is produced by witnesses called by the opposing party in the court case. There are many cases of extrinsic evidence being produced in a court and the party calling the witness; the party having called the witness is the party seeking a certain outcome from the case.

If a document (an instrument) is incapable of clear being understood as to its meaning and would have more than one meaning, extrinsic evidence would be required to be provided on how to construe and understand the instrument/document. When evidence is extrinsic, the witness will attend court to give their testimony before the court judge and magistrates. The witness will be sworn-in or given an affirmation to tell the truth. When the witness gives their testimony in court; the witness will state their personal account of what has happened; how they know the defendant or claimant or both of the parties; or how the witness knows what has led to the case in being brought to court; and the witness will give their account of what they have witnessed.

The witness will be asked questions by the party that called the witness to testify before the court. Once the questions have been asked by the party that called the witness, the witness would then be cross examined by the party who has not called the witness to testify before the court. The party who has not called the witness to testify will ask their questions so that the cross examination can get to the truth of the matter.

Now to relate the above explanation of extrinsic evidence to the making of an engraved stone memorial: For example, the parents who have lost their son to suicide, had asked the maker for a gravestone with the son’s identifying photo (this is a form of extrinsic evidence of the identity and the likeness of the son and was supplied to the maker). The gravestone itself is extrinsic evidence of the son, created from the memory and vision of the parents, in the design they explain of how their son liked being teased because he teased others too; and laughter is key; so therefore the photo of the son smiling, and having light colours on the gravestone were requested; along with carved stems representing flowers and a dove which represents the son’s peaceful resting; all of this adds the extrinsic evidence of the son to be remembered by his family in the design of the gravestone.

The entwining of memories, stories, personal touches, and characteristics of the deceased person, all of the extrinsic evidences of the deceased’s personality and physical looks, all goes into the gravestone maker crafting a memorial for the family. A gravestone is the Gravestone Maker’s statement of true eloquence. There are similarities then in the way that a barrister will present their evidence in court before the judge; as to how the gravestone maker will present the completed product to the bereaved family; and how the process of creating a gravestone requires the Gravestone Maker to be vigilant, accurate and a work of detail.

Finally, a customer testimonial is all extrinsic evidence of the level of craftsmanship and skill, the passion and the telling of a story behind the gravestone of a person that has been created and presented to the family, making the grief a little less painful by knowing their loved one is in peace forever and their loved one will be remembered by all who visit the memorial. To integrate the above legal framework into stonemasonry, when you care to take time to understand a bereaved person’s story, you will be able to create a true representation of a person’s memories which can then become an engraved stone memorial, and your client will be pleased knowing that their loved one is always at rest in the crafted and engraved stone memorial.

For more information on evidence law, you can visit the Wikipedia page on Evidence in Law.