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burden of production

The burden of production refers to a party's obligation to come forward with sufficient evidence to support a particular proposition of fact . The burden of production combines with the burden of persuasion to make up the burden of proof throughout a trial. 

Satisfying the burden of production may also be referred to as establishing a prima facie  case. Determining whether a party has satisfied its burden of production is not an issue of fact for the jury; it is an issue of law . As a result, a judge can dismiss a case before it ever gets to the jury when they believe this burden has not been met.

When a party has satisfied its burden of production, it has produced enough evidence on an issue to have the issue decided by the fact-finder rather than decided against the party in a directed verdict , motion for judgment as a matter of law  or motion for summary judgment .

The burden of production is also referred to as: "burden of going forward with evidence," "production burden."

[Last reviewed in June of 2022 by the Wex Definitions Team
]

Keywords

• evidence; burden of proof

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