Probative material

Question

I am having trouble understanding the following sentence because of this word "probative" - can someone help?
"A decision must be based upon logically probative material and not mere speculation"
Why the words "logically probative material" instead of say "evidence". I can't find the word "probative" in the dictionary, not the ones I looked in that is..

Usenet · Accepted Answer

[nq:1]I am having trouble understanding the following sentence because of this word "probative" - can someone help? "A decision must ... of say "evidence". I can't find the word "probative" in the dictionary, not the ones I looked in that is..[/nq]

"proÂ·baÂ·tive
â??adjective

1. serving or designed for testing or trial.
2. affording proof or evidence."

Les

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]I am having trouble understanding the following sentence because of this word "probative" - can someone help? "A decision must ... of say "evidence". I can't find the word "probative" in the dictionary, not the ones I looked in that is..[/nq]
Meriam-Webster Online:
probative
Main Entry:
pro·ba·tive
Pronunciation:
\?pro b?-tiv\
Function:
adjective
Date:
15th century
1 : serving to test or try : exploratory
2 : serving to prove : substantiating

So "probative material" is that information or material that serves to prove, something to be true. "Logically probative" means that it proves the conclusion following the laws of logic; that it provides an argument which is sound and a conclusion which is both valid and true.

"Probative material" is a more restricted class than simple "evidence", which could be circumstantial, considered opinion, or experiential, without being probative.

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Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]I am having trouble understanding the following sentence because of this word "probative" - can someone help? "A decision must ... of say "evidence". I can't find the word "probative" in the dictionary, not the ones I looked in that is..[/nq]
You need to get a decent dictionary. Even the small Concise Oxford English Dictionary has
probative /"pr@Ub@tIv/
Â· adj. chiefly Law affording proof or evidence.
â?? ORIGIN ME: from L. probativus, from probat-, probare (see prove).

The answer really lies in what you think the status of evidence is. 'Probative material' is a stronger category, since such is presumed to provide proof. Evidence may be suggestive or even misleading. One weighs evidence, which is often conflicting, to arrive at a conclusion about relative likelihood of different possibilities; a piece of evidence that in itself clinches the argument is probative. To help grasp this difference, read what Steven H. Gifis writes in his Law Dictionary (Barron's, 2003):

PROBATIVE tending to prove a particular proposition or to persuade one as to the truth of an allegation.
PROBATIVE FACTS matters of evidence required to prove ultimate facts; "facts from which the ultimate and decisive facts may be inferred ... are probative." 21 S.E. d 873.PROBATIVE VALUE the relative weight of particular evidence. For example, if a trial involves the question of whether the defendant was driving at an excessive rate of speed (sic) through a school zone, evidence tending to prove that he was going 50 miles an hour less than a block from the school zone would be of very high probative value; evidence that he was going 50 miles an hour two blocks away (without an intervening stop sign) would have less but still high probative value; evidence that he was going 50 miles an hour six blocks away in a residential zone would have even less but still some probative value; evidence that he was speeding several miles away or that he ran a traffic signal the previous day would have very little probative value.

Whatever value the traffic violation the previous day may have would be outweighed by its prejudicial impact upon the jury and it would likely be excluded.

The editors of Black's Law Dictionary publish several abridgments, the smallest of which is the 'Pocket Edition'. The 2nd edition (2001) has sufficient explanation:

probative ..., /adj./ tending to prove or disprove. - Courts can exclude relevant evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice. Fed. R. Evid. 403. probativeness, /n./
(s.v. evidence)
/probative evidence/ ... Evidence that tends to prove or disprove a point in issue.
(s.v. fact)
/probative fact/ ... A fact in evidence used to prove an ultimate fact, such as skid marks used to show speed as a predicate in a finding of negligence.

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]I am having trouble understanding the following sentence because of this word "probative" - can someone help? "A decision must ... of say "evidence". I can't find the word "probative" in the dictionary, not the ones I looked in that is..[/nq]
No answer to this but somewhat related: It might be worth mentioning here that some people use proof to mean evidence, and some use proof to mean conclusive proof. Maybe it depends on what field they are in.

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Probative material

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