A closing argument, summation, or summing up is the concluding statement of each party's

counsel A counsel or a counsellor at law is a person who gives advice and deals with various issues, particularly in legal matters. It is a title often used interchangeably with the title of ''lawyer''. The word ''counsel'' can also mean advice given ...

reiterating the important

arguments An argument is a series of sentences, statements, or propositions some of which are called premises and one is the conclusion. The purpose of an argument is to give reasons for one's conclusion via justification, explanation, and/or persua ...

for the

trier of fact In law, a trier of fact or finder of fact is a person or group who determines disputed issues of fact in a legal proceeding (usually a trial) and how relevant they are to deciding its outcome. To determine a fact is to decide, from the evide ...

, often the jury, in a court case. A closing argument occurs after the presentation of

evidence Evidence for a proposition is what supports the proposition. It is usually understood as an indication that the proposition is truth, true. The exact definition and role of evidence vary across different fields. In epistemology, evidence is what J ...

. A closing argument may not contain any new information and may only use

introduced at trial. It is not customary to raise objections during closing arguments, except for egregious behavior. However, such objections, when made, can prove critical later in order to preserve appellate issues. In the United States, the

plaintiff A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of the ...

is generally entitled to open the argument. The

defendant In court proceedings, a defendant is a person or object who is the party either accused of committing a crime in criminal prosecution or against whom some type of civil relief is being sought in a civil case. Terminology varies from one juris ...

usually goes second. The plaintiff or prosecution is usually then permitted a final rebuttal argument. In some jurisdictions, however, this form is condensed, and the prosecution or plaintiff goes second, after the defense, with no rebuttals. Either party may waive their opportunity to present a closing argument. During closing arguments, counsel may not (among other restrictions) vouch for the credibility of witnesses, indicate their personal opinions of the case, comment on the absence of evidence that they themselves have caused to be excluded, or attempt to exhort the jury to irrational, emotional behavior. In some countries (e.g. France or Germany), in criminal cases, the defendant's counsel always makes their closing argument last, after the public prosecutor or any other party. Sometimes the defendant is allowed to address the court directly after his or her counsel's closing argument. In a

criminal law Criminal law is the body of law that relates to crime. It proscribes conduct perceived as threatening, harmful, or otherwise endangering to the property, health, safety, and Well-being, welfare of people inclusive of one's self. Most criminal l ...

case, the

prosecution A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in Civil law (legal system), civil law. The prosecution is the ...

will restate all the evidence which helps prove each element of the offence. In the United States, there are often several limits as to what the prosecution may or may not say, including precluding the prosecution from using a defendant's exercise of his Fifth Amendment right to silence as evidence of guilt. One of the most important restrictions on prosecutors, however, is against shifting the burden of proof, or implying that the defense must put on evidence or somehow prove the innocence of the defendant. In some cases, a judge's presentation of the jury instruction is also known as summing up. In this case, the judge is merely articulating the law and questions of fact upon which the jury is asked to deliberate. The purposes and techniques of closing argument are taught in courses on Trial Advocacy. The closing is often planned early in the trial planning process. The attorneys will integrate the closing with the overall case strategy through either a theme and theory or, with more advanced strategies, a line of effort. The prosecution should also state the main points and be sure to give their side of the argument and to be emotional.Dreier, p. 46-73

References

Legal procedure {{Law-stub

See also

References