United States law The law of the United States comprises many levels of codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the most important is the nation's Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the federal government of the United States, as well ...

, a statement against interest is a statement made by a person which places them in a less advantageous position than if they had not made the statement and is, as a consequence, deemed credible as evidence (usually within a legal trial). For example, if a driver in an automobile accident boasts publicly that they were speeding, it may represent a legal admission of liability. It is analogous to the criminal equivalent, the statement against penal interest which is a statement that puts the person making the statement at risk of prosecution. In the United States federal court system and many state courts, statements against interest by individuals who are not available to be called at trial (but not other persons) may be admitted as evidence where in other circumstances they would be excluded as

hearsay Hearsay evidence, in a legal forum, is testimony from an under-oath witness who is reciting an out-of-court statement, the content of which is being offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted. In most courts, hearsay evidence is inadmi ...

. Under th
Federal Rules of Evidence
Rule 804(b)(3) provides: "A statement that: (A) a reasonable person in the declarant's position would have made only if the person believed it to be true because, when made, it was so contrary to the declarant’s proprietary or pecuniary interest or had so great a tendency to invalidate the declarant’s claim against someone else or to expose the declarant to civil or criminal liability; and (B) is supported by corroborating circumstances that clearly indicate its trustworthiness, if it is offered in a criminal case as one that tends to expose the declarant to criminal liability." See Fed. R. Evid
804(b)(3)
The rule was last amended on December 1, 2010. Se
Legislative History (with links to key documents).

See also