An operative fact is a legally
relevant
Relevant is something directly related, connected or pertinent to a topic; it may also mean something that is current.
Relevant may also refer to:
* Relevant operator, a concept in physics, see renormalization group
* Relevant, Ain, a commune ...
fact
A fact is a datum about one or more aspects of a circumstance, which, if accepted as true and proven true, allows a logical conclusion to be reached on a true–false evaluation. Standard reference works are often used to check facts. Scient ...
that establishes a legal relationship between persons.
For example, if a person is the beneficiary of a disability insurance policy, that person becomes entitled to benefits upon becoming disabled. Proof of disability is an operative fact, because it establishes the beneficiary's legal right to receive the insurance benefits.
Any fact that tends to prove or disprove the existence of another fact is classified as an evidential fact. An operative fact may also be an evidential fact, but not necessarily. Similarly, additional evidence may be required before a legal relationship is proved.
[ For example, if one person strikes another person, then that fact may create legal right to recover damages for ]battery
Battery most often refers to:
* Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power
* Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact
Battery may also refer to:
Energy source
*Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...
and potentially establishing a legal relationship. That same act could be evidence of the defendant's state of mind.
In litigation, operative and material facts are relevant to a decision of the court. All operative facts are material facts.
The term "operative fact" as a descriptor of the factual premise to a legal conclusion has roots in Hohfeldian legal semiotics
Semiotics (also called semiotic studies) is the systematic study of sign processes ( semiosis) and meaning making. Semiosis is any activity, conduct, or process that involves signs, where a sign is defined as anything that communicates something ...
.
References
Legal terminology
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