Witness statement template is a summary of oral evidence that a witness will give at trial. Generally, the statement start with the name of case, claim number and also state the full name, address of the witness. It should record what the witness saw, heard or felt, and it is also important to record anything that may open up a new line of inquiry in a case. The statement must intend to be signed by the maker. Generally, it contains your own accounts of the facts relating to the issues arising in a case. It is a formal statement recording the evidence of a person and sets out what a witness says about your case. A basic template incorporates the essential information, such as name and number of the case and what this case is about. Then it includes the information about the witness i.e. full name, address, both temporary and permanent.
Purpose of Witness Statement Template
Basically the major purpose of a witness statement is to provide written evidence to support a party case that will be used as evidence in a court. The statement is the critical part of the case designed to show it in its strongest light and a copy of the statement is served to the other parties before the hearing where the statement is submitted in evidence. It is very important that the statement must be in your own words so that you understand what is written in your statement and effectively reflects your account of the evidence.
Content of Witness Statement
A statement of witness holds very special importance not only in business but also in legal life. Underneath are given most common content which can be used in any witness statement. These are given below;
1- A witness statement should start with the date heading. It should be posted on the left side of the statement.
2- The most importance segment is what you are going to elaborate while writing a witness statement. A subject is what which you need the most to confirm what you really wish to share.
3- The addressing party or organization should be included in the witness statement. This can be added after subject area.
4- You can write down your experience as witness in the description segment. It should be detailed and comprehensive, therefore you will need to add content as you wish.
5- To support your witness, you can add further details or can add relevant information. It is usually added after discussing with the witness.
6- A witness is required to record exact moments especially Time of incident. It should be added with bold font style.
7- The witness is also required to sign in front of any official. The space of signature of the witness should be given in the end of the statement.
8- The official person either from the organization or court should also sign there for confirmation.
9- There should be date of signature because there could be difference of statement preparation and recording. This date section will confirm when a witness recorded his/her statement.
Details of Witness Statement Template
Witness statements whether written or oral, start with basic information about the case. Furthermore, a witness statement template contains all the information or details that a witness has in relation to the case in numbered paragraphs, and it ends with a statement certifying everything the witness said was true from the core of his/her heart and that the witness will be liable for courts disciplinary action in case of falsifying the statement. In the end, the template incorporates the signature of the witness. Witness statement templates are generally available in or word documents online.