# California Evidence Code (CEC) — Reference

The California Evidence Code (CEC) is codified in **Cal. Evid.
Code §§ 1-1605** and was enacted by the Legislature in 1965. The
CEC is **statutory**, not a court rule — changes require
legislative action, unlike the Federal Rules of Evidence (FRE),
which are court rules. The CEC parallels the FRE in many
respects but contains important California-specific deviations.

Authoritative source:
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codesTOCSelected.xhtml?tocCode=EVID

> **NOT LEGAL ADVICE.** Verify each section against the current
> Evidence Code before citing.

## Part 1 — Preliminary Provisions (§§ 1-12)

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1** — Scope; the Code governs proceedings
  in courts of California
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 2** — Courts may take judicial notice
  of applicable law (see §§ 450-460)

## Division 3 — General Provisions (§§ 100-160)

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 140** — "Evidence" means testimony,
  writings, material objects, or other things presented to
  the senses offered to prove the existence or nonexistence
  of a fact
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 160** — "Burden of producing evidence"
  and "burden of proof" distinguished

## Division 4 — Judicial Notice (§§ 450-460)

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 451** — Mandatory judicial notice:
  federal and California statutory and constitutional law,
  decisional law, rules of court, and other matters
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 452** — Permissive judicial notice:
  laws of foreign nations and U.S. states, court records of
  California, facts that are not reasonably subject to dispute
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 455-456** — Procedure for taking judicial
  notice; opportunity to be heard

## Division 6 — Witnesses (§§ 700-795)

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 700** — Every person is competent to
  be a witness except as otherwise provided
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 702** — Personal knowledge requirement:
  a witness may testify to a matter only if the witness has
  personal knowledge of the matter
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 720** — Expert witness: a person is
  qualified as an expert if the witness has special knowledge,
  skill, experience, training, or education sufficient to
  qualify as an expert on the subject
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 721** — Cross-examination of expert:
  may be used to test the expert's knowledge and the bases
  of the opinion
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 730** — Court-appointed expert: court
  may appoint an expert on its own motion or on the application
  of any party

## Division 7 — Opinion Testimony (§§ 800-870)

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 800** — Lay opinion: a lay witness may
  give opinion testimony if rationally based on the witness's
  perception and helpful to the clear understanding of testimony
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 801** — Expert opinion: testimony in
  the form of an opinion based on facts or data perceived by
  or made known to the expert at or before the hearing
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 802** — Bases of expert opinion: the
  facts or data upon which the expert bases an opinion need
  not be admissible if of a type that may reasonably be relied
  upon by an expert in forming such an opinion
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 803** — Expert opinion on ultimate issue
  admissible

## Division 8 — Privileges (§§ 900-1070)

California privileges are **statutory** and enumerated in the
CEC — broader and more numerous than federal common-law
privileges.

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 952** — Attorney-client privilege:
  a client may refuse to disclose a confidential communication
  between attorney and client; extends to agents of the
  attorney and client
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 970** — Spousal privilege: spouse may
  refuse to testify against their spouse in a criminal
  proceeding; limited form in civil proceedings
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 980** — Marital communications privilege:
  confidential spousal communications are privileged
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 992** — Physician-patient privilege
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1014** — Psychotherapist-patient privilege
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1040** — Official information privilege
  (government may claim privilege for official information
  in certain circumstances)
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1060** — Trade secret privilege
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1070** — Journalist privilege (newspaper
  reporter's privilege to refuse to disclose source)

## Division 9 — Evidence Affected or Excluded by Extrinsic Policies (§§ 1100-1160)

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1101** — Character evidence: evidence of
  character is inadmissible to prove conduct on a specific
  occasion in a civil case (with exceptions for habit, routine
  practice, prior specific acts in some civil contexts)
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1152** — Settlement offer: evidence of
  furnishing or offering consideration to settle a disputed
  claim is inadmissible to prove liability
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1154** — Offer to pay medical expenses:
  inadmissible to prove liability

## Division 10 — Hearsay Evidence (§§ 1200-1390)

Hearsay is the critical division for civil litigation, especially
debt, contract, and business-document cases.

### Hearsay rule — Cal. Evid. Code § 1200

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1200** — Hearsay rule: evidence of a
  statement made other than by a witness while testifying at
  the hearing, offered to prove the truth of the matter
  asserted, is inadmissible
- California's hearsay exceptions are **enumerated** — there
  is no federal FRE 807 residual "catchall" exception in the
  California Evidence Code. If no enumerated exception applies,
  the hearsay is inadmissible.

### Non-hearsay admissions — Cal. Evid. Code § 1220

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1220** — Admission of a party: evidence
  of a statement made by a party is not excluded by the
  hearsay rule when offered against that party (the statement
  must be the party's own statement)
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1222** — Authorized admission: statement
  made by authorized agent admissible against the principal
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1223** — Coconspirator statement

### Prior statements — Cal. Evid. Code §§ 1235-1238

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1235** — Inconsistent statement:
  admissible if the declarant is a witness and the statement
  was made when the matter was fresh in the declarant's memory
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1236** — Prior consistent statement
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1237** — Past recollection recorded

### Business records — Cal. Evid. Code § 1271 (THE key exception)

**Cal. Evid. Code § 1271** — Records of a regularly conducted
business activity are not excluded by the hearsay rule if:

1. The writing was made in the regular course of a business
2. The writing was made at or near the time of the act,
   condition, or event
3. The custodian or other qualified witness testifies to its
   identity and the mode of its preparation
4. The sources of information and method and time of preparation
   were such as to indicate its trustworthiness

**Foundation requirements**: The custodian or "qualified
witness" must establish all four elements. This is the
California analog to FRE 803(6). The language differs:
California requires the witness to testify that the writing
"was made at or near the time of the act, condition, or event"
rather than FRE 803(6)(A)'s "at or near the time" language —
substantively similar but the California court applies its own
precedents interpreting § 1271.

### Official records — Cal. Evid. Code § 1280

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1280** — A writing made as a record of
  an act, condition, or event is not excluded by the hearsay
  rule if:
  - Made by and within the scope of duty of a public employee
  - Made at or near the time of the act, condition, or event
  - Sources of information and method and time of preparation
    were such as to indicate its trustworthiness

### Other key hearsay exceptions

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1240** — Spontaneous declaration (excited
  utterance): statement made spontaneously while the declarant
  was under the stress of excitement caused by the perceived
  occurrence
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1250** — Statement of then-existing
  mental or physical state
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1251** — Statement of previously
  existing mental or physical state
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1260** — Statement by dying declarant
  (California analog to FRE 804(b)(2))
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1310** — Statements by decedents in
  certain actions
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1340** — Commercial lists and published
  compilations (Kelley Blue Book, etc.)
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1341** — Published historical works,
  scientific and technical reference works

## Division 11 — Authentication and Identification (§§ 1400-1454)

### Cal. Evid. Code § 1400 — Requirement of authentication

Authentication of a writing is required before it may be
received in evidence. A writing must be authenticated by
evidence sufficient to sustain a finding that it is the writing
that the proponent of the evidence claims it is.

### Cal. Evid. Code § 1410 — Distinctive characteristics

A writing may be authenticated by evidence of its distinctive
characteristics, including its appearance, contents, substance,
internal patterns, or other distinctive characteristics.

### Cal. Evid. Code § 1412 — Authentication by reply

A writing may be authenticated by evidence that it was received
in response to a prior communication sent to the purported
author.

### Cal. Evid. Code § 1413 — Authentication by author's testimony

A writing may be authenticated by testimony of a witness with
personal knowledge of the matters contained in the writing.

### Cal. Evid. Code § 1421 — Authentication by content

A writing may be authenticated by evidence that the writing
refers to or states matters that are unlikely to be known to
anyone other than the person who is claimed to be the
author. This is the most common authentication route for
account records and correspondence in debt cases.

### Cal. Evid. Code § 1452 — Genuineness of official writing

A writing purporting to be an official seal or to be signed by
a public officer is presumed to be what it purports to be.

## Division 12 — Secondary Evidence (§§ 1500-1567)

The CEC replaces the common-law "best evidence rule" with the
**secondary evidence rule**.

- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1520** — Best evidence / original
  document: to prove the content of a writing, recording, or
  photograph, the original is required, with exceptions
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1521** — Secondary evidence: a copy of
  a writing is admissible to prove the content of the original
  unless the original is required under § 1520 or a party
  introduces evidence challenging the accuracy of the copy or
  the circumstances make it unfair to admit the copy
- **Cal. Evid. Code § 1523** — Oral testimony of contents of
  a writing is inadmissible unless the original is lost or
  destroyed (without fraud by the proponent), is outside
  California, is in possession of the opponent, or relates
  to a collateral matter

## Foundation for business records (Cal. Evid. Code § 1271)

### Route 1 — Live custodian testimony

The custodian or "other qualified witness" testifies (live or
by declaration):

1. The writing was made as a record of [event/act/condition]
2. The writing was made in the regular course of business
3. The writing was made at or near the time of the act/event
4. The sources of information and method of preparation
   indicate trustworthiness
5. The custodian identifies the writing as a business record
   of [company]

### Route 2 — Certified copies of public records

Public records authenticated under Cal. Evid. Code § 1452
may be admitted without live testimony.

### Business-records foundation in debt-buyer cases

The same foundation challenges arise in California debt-buyer
cases as in Oregon and Washington:

- **Lack of personal knowledge** — Cal. Evid. Code § 702
- **Insufficient foundation** — Cal. Evid. Code § 1271
  (declarant cannot attest to original creditor's record-
  keeping practices)
- **Hearsay within hearsay** — Cal. Evid. Code § 1200
- **Secondary evidence rule** — Cal. Evid. Code § 1521
  (challenge to accuracy of copies of account documents)

See `ca-consumer-debt/references/evidence-debt-buyer.md` for
the debt-defense-specific patterns.

## Comparison to Federal Rules of Evidence

| Concept | California (CEC) | Federal (FRE) |
|---------|-----------------|---------------|
| Code type | Statute (legislative) | Court rule |
| Residual hearsay exception | None | FRE 807 (yes) |
| Business records | Cal. Evid. Code § 1271 | FRE 803(6) |
| Official records | Cal. Evid. Code § 1280 | FRE 803(8) |
| Authentication | Cal. Evid. Code § 1400 | FRE 901 |
| Self-authentication | Cal. Evid. Code § 1452 | FRE 902 |
| Original document | Cal. Evid. Code § 1520-1521 | FRE 1002-1003 |
| Privilege codification | Statutory, detailed (§§ 900-1070) | Common law; FRE 501 defers to state law in civil cases |
| Attorney-client | Cal. Evid. Code § 952 | Common law |

Key differences:
1. **No residual exception** in California — strict reliance
   on enumerated exceptions required
2. **Privileges are broader** — more enumerated privileges than
   federal common law
3. **Secondary evidence rule** replaces "best evidence rule"
   in California (a modern reform adopted in 1998)
4. **Secondary evidence rule (§ 1521)** is more permissive than
   the FRE 1002 original-document rule — copies generally
   admissible unless accuracy challenged or unfair

## How to re-pull

The CEC text is at:
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codesTOCSelected.xhtml?tocCode=EVID

For a specific section:
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=EVID&sectionNum=[SECTION]