Question

A plaintiff sued a chimney sweeping company for personal injury and property damages resulting from an explosion in her chimney the evening after the company had cleaned it. The explosion, which occurred when the plaintiff lit a fire in the fireplace, caused minor damage to the chimney, roof, and to the plaintiff, who was hit by falling bricks. As evidence that she assumed the risk of injury, the company offers to have its foreman testify that he had told the plaintiff not to use the fireplace for 24 hours to allow certain chemicals to evaporate. Is the foreman's proposed testimony hearsay

Answer 1

No, because the statement is not offered for its truth.

Step-by-step explanation:

Hearsay is defined as a statement that is aimed at proving the truth of a matter.

So if a person makes a statement not aimed at proving the truth of a matter it is not hearsay.

In the given scenario the company offers to have its foreman testify that he had told the plaintiff not to use the fireplace for 24 hours to allow certain chemicals to evaporate.

This statement is offered as a way to test the knowledge of the plaintiff. To see if he was aware of the danger of in the space of 24 hours.

That statement was not issued as a way of showing that it was dangerous for the plaintiff to light a fire, only to test his knowledge. So it is not hearsay.