New Evidence Provision at Appellate Stage in Civil Action (A Comparative Study in Iranian and English Law)

Provision of new evidence at appellate stage, despite a new claim, does not contradict with the two-phased proceeding. Although the standard of nobility of evidence in the Civil Procedure Code of Iran has not been mentioned clearly; however, by drawing attention to the process of enactment of some articles of the Civil Procedure Code, two different criteria can be inferred. By relying on section ‘’C’’ of article 348, and articles 96, 220 and 219 of Civil Procedure Code, we can deliver a strict definition of new evidence, and it will be evidence that has not been provided in the first instance’’. Accordingly, those pieces of evidence that, in spite of being provided, for whatever reason have not been examined by the first instance court, will not be considered new ones at the appellate phase. Based on the second approach, as our case law inclines to, all pieces of evidence that have not been verified at the court of first instance, are providable at the appellate stage. In the UK, a conception similar to the first standard, but narrower, has been accepted; accordingly, new evidence must not be provided at the first instance stage, and the applicant proves that it was out of reach, even though reasonable and normal efforts were made. Additionally, evidence must be of credibility and has impact on the result of action.