Opinion ID: 456068
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Admissibility of Anecdotal Testimony

Text: 7 At trial, plaintiff introduced deposition testimony of two doctors concerning several successful case histories of people who had received treatment at the IRC. The second issue appellant raises is that anecdotal testimony concerning approximately 10 patients of the nearly 1700 who had been treated at the IRC was irrelevant and should have been excluded. Alternatively, Aetna contends that the testimony should have been excluded because it was misleading to the jury and unfairly prejudicial to Aetna, and of little or no probative value. 8 Evidence is relevant if it has any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence. Fed.R.Evid. 401. The determination of whether evidence is relevant lies within the discretion of the trial court. Pesaplastic, C.A. v. Cincinnati Milacron Co., 750 F.2d 1516, 1524 (11th Cir.1985). One of the issues contested at trial was whether the IRC treatments were necessary treatments. The anecdotal testimony that several patients had been successfully treated at the IRC had some tendency to show that such treatments were necessary to fight cancer, and thus was relevant evidence. 9 Evidence, although relevant, may still be excluded if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or misleading the jury. Rozier v. Ford Motor Co., 573 F.2d 1332, 1347 (5th Cir.1978); Fed.R.Evid. 403. However, like determinations of relevance, determinations of admissibility of evidence under Rule 403 are subject to review only for abuse of discretion. Rozier, 573 F.2d at 1347. The trial judge acted well within his discretion in deciding to admit the anecdotal testimony. If the testimony that 10 out of 1700 patients were successfully treated was not particularly strong evidence that the IRC treatments were necessary, Aetna could have exposed the weakness of this testimony on cross-examination or through Aetna's own witnesses.