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Federal Rules of Evidence – Rule 602 

(through July 14, 2022)

Crushed Rule

Except for expert opinions, evidence must be based on personal observations.

Actual Rule

A witness may testify to a matter only if evidence is introduced sufficient to support a finding that the witness has personal knowledge of the matter. Evidence to prove personal knowledge may consist of the witness’s own testimony. This rule does not apply to a witness’s expert testimony under Rule 703.

Selected Committee Notes 

“* * * [T]he rule requiring that a witness who testifies to a fact which can be perceived by the senses must have had an opportunity to observe, and must have actually observed the fact” is a “most pervasive manifestation” of the common law insistence upon “the most reliable sources of information.” McCormick §10, p. 19. These foundation requirements may, of course, be furnished by the testimony of the witness himself; hence personal knowledge is not an absolute but may consist of what the witness thinks he knows from personal perception. 2 Wigmore §650. It will be observed that the rule is in fact a specialized application of the provisions of Rule 104(b) on conditional relevancy.

This rule does not govern the situation of a witness who testifies to a hearsay statement as such, if he has personal knowledge of the making of the statement. Rules 801 and 805 would be applicable. This rule would, however, prevent him from testifying to the subject matter of the hearsay statement, as he has no personal knowledge of it.

The reference to Rule 703 is designed to avoid any question of conflict between the present rule and the provisions of that rule allowing an expert to express opinions based on facts of which he does not have personal knowledge.

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Key Rules (MBE/MEE)

• FRE 103 – Evidence Rulings
• FRE 104 – Preliminary Questions
• FRE 105 – Limiting How Evidence may be Used
• FRE 106 – Completeness Rule
• FRE 201 – Judicial Notice
• FRE 301 – Presumptions
• FRE 401 – Relevance
• FRE 402 – Irrelevant = Inadmissible
• FRE 403 – Excluding the Prejudicial, Confusing, etc.
• FRE 404 – Character Evidence
• FRE 405 – Proving Character
• FRE 406 – Habit, Routine
• FRE 407 – Subsequent Remedial Measures
• FRE 408 – Compromise Negotiations
• FRE 409 – Offers to Pay Expenses
• FRE 410 – Pleas, Related Statements
• FRE 411 – Liability Insurance
• FRE 412 – Victim’s Sexual Predisposition
• FRE 413, 414, 415 – Other Sex-Related Rules
• FRE 501 – Privilege in General
• FRE 502 – Attorney-Client Privilege, Work-Product Doctrine
• FRE 601 – Witness Competency
• FRE 602 – Personal Knowledge
• FRE 605 – Judge as Witness
• FRE 606 – Juror as Witness
• FRE 607 – Impeachment
• FRE 608 – Honest, Dishonest Character
• FRE 609 – Evidence of Criminal Conviction
• FRE 610 – Religious Beliefs
• FRE 611 – Mode, Order of Evidence
• FRE 612 – Recollection Refreshed
• FRE 613 – Prior Statements
• FRE 614 – Court Witness Examination
• FRE 615 – Excluding Witnesses
• FRE 701 – Non-Expert Opinion
• FRE 702 – Expert Opinion
• FRE 703 – Bases of Expert Opinion
• FRE 704 – Ultimate Issue
• FRE 705 – Disclosing Underlying Data
• FRE 801 – Hearsay Defined
• FRE 802 – Rule Against Hearsay
• FRE 803 – Strong Hearsay Exceptions
• FRE 804 – Weak Hearsay Exceptions
• FRE 805 – Double Hearsay
• FRE 806 – Impeaching Hearsay Declarants
• FRE 807 – Residual Hearsay Exception
• FRE 901 – Authentication, Identification
• FRE 902 – Self-Authenticating Evidence
• FRE 1001 – Original Defined
• FRE 1002 – Original Sometimes Required
• FRE 1003 – When Copies Generally Admissible
• FRE 1004 – Other Times Admissible
• FRE 1005 – Public Record Copies Often Admissible
• FRE 1006 – Summaries
• FRE 1007 – Acknowledged Content
• FRE 1008 – Functions of Court, Jury
• FRE 1101 – Rules’ Applicability