A human-made legal procedure in which opposing counsel questions a witness called by the other side. Parameters: (1) a witness already giving testimony under examination, (2) questioning by the opposing party (not the party who called the witness), (3) scope limited to matters raised during direct examination and the witness's credibility, (4) a judge who rules on objections during questioning. The practice persists through codified rules of evidence, courtroom procedure, and the adversarial tradition of common-law and many civil-law systems. [formal: cross-examination | substrate: behavior | horizon: a moment | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.01]
Accepted ontology entry
cross-examination
A human-made legal procedure in which opposing counsel questions a witness called by the other side. Parameters: (1) a witness already giving testimony under examination, (2) questioning by the opposing party (not the party who called the…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A human-made legal practice for testing witness testimony through structured questioning by opposing counsel. It is an institutionalized procedure designed to challenge claims and reveal inconsistencies, persisting through formal rules of court and legal tradition.
Names and aliases
- cross-examinationen · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cmrygaooj00wtekkx0ewdpiurINSTANCE_OF →
Cross-examination is a specific kind of interrogation — questioning a witness under adversarial conditions to test credibility. Law 9: specific→general.
- cmreisor900ktg8vu5xgxpcjfSERVES →
Cross-examination is designed and maintained for the sake of justice — it serves as a legal mechanism for testing witness credibility and uncovering truth. Law 8d: servant→master. The purpose test passes: cross-examination exists to serve justice.
Relations to this entry
No accepted relations in this direction.
Record identity
- Created
- Jul 28, 2026, 5:44 PM UTC
- Content hash
- f1f08c8a2e2008cb5cdf23179489469bd446d454fe8a11565812a5aeed15e14b