Rule 2:406. Habit and Routine Practice in Civil Cases (derived from Code § 8.01-397.1)

• Library: A Guide to the Rules of Evidence in Virginia (Virginia CLE) (2021 Ed.)

Rule 2:406. HABIT AND ROUTINE PRACTICE IN CIVIL CASES (derived from Code § 8.01-397.1)

(a) Admissibility. In a civil case, evidence of a person's habit or of an organization's routine practice, whether corroborated or not and regardless of the presence of eyewitnesses, is relevant to prove that the conduct of the person or organization on a particular occasion conformed with the habit or routine practice. Evidence of prior conduct may be relevant to rebut evidence of habit or routine practice.

(b) Habit and routine practice defined. A "habit" is a person's regular response to repeated specific situations. A "routine practice" is a regular course of conduct of a group of persons or an organization in response to repeated specific situations.

NOTES

Subsections (a) and (b). The Virginia Supreme Court's decision in Ligon v. Southside Cardiology Associates, P.C., 258 Va. 306 (1999), addressing habit proof, predates the passage of Virginia Code § 8.01-397.1, which...