Also known as: oaths · affirmation · sworn statement
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A solemn declaration that a statement is true or that a promise will be kept. The declaration typically invokes divine witness or subjects the declarant to penalties for falsehood such as perjury.
Detective Onyx O'Reilly submitted an affidavit detailing observations of drug activity at a residence. A magistrate reviewed the statements and issued a search warrant. Officers later relied on the warrant to enter the premises and seize evidence.
Oskar Ocampo served written interrogatories on Odyssey Logistics seeking details about shipment delays. The company's compliance officer prepared answers and signed them after swearing to their accuracy. The responses were served within the required period and later used at trial.
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Oswald Orozco was called to the stand in a contract dispute. The clerk administered an oath requiring him to tell the truth. Orozco then described the negotiations he had witnessed between the parties.
Oakridge Manufacturing told Orchard Farms that a new tractor model would operate without overheating under continuous use. The representation became part of the purchase agreement. When the tractor overheated during harvest, Orchard Farms sued for breach of the resulting warranty.
Odin Obeng formed a new limited liability company and listed Osprey Aviation as its registered agent in the filing. The designation operated as the company's statement that Osprey had agreed to accept service. A later lawsuit was properly served on Osprey at its in-state office.
Olive Okafor and Orson Ochoa filed a joint petition stating under oath that their marriage was irretrievably broken. Neither party later denied the assertion. The court held a hearing and entered a dissolution decree based on the sworn statements.
A false statement made under oath in an official proceeding concerning a material matter constitutes perjury when the declarant does not believe the statement to be true. Perjury is a felony under the Model Penal Code and subjects the person to criminal penalties. The oath itself creates the legal duty of truthfulness that triggers liability.
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Yes. The Fourth Amendment expressly provides that no warrants shall issue but upon probable cause supported by oath or affirmation. The oath or affirmation supplies the sworn basis for the magistrate's probable cause determination. Without it the warrant is invalid.
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An affirmation is sufficient. Federal Rule of Evidence 603 permits either an oath or an affirmation designed to impress the duty to testify truthfully on the witness's conscience. The rule accommodates witnesses who object to religious oaths while still ensuring the solemnity of the proceeding.
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Each interrogatory answer must be given separately and fully in writing under oath. The oath binds the responding party to the truth of the statements and allows the answers to be used as evidence at trial. Failure to answer under oath renders the responses incomplete under the rules.
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…proceedings, stating: "Another fundamental right I then contended for, was, that no man's conscience ought to be racked by oaths imposed, to answer to questions concerning himself in matters criminal, or pretended to be so." Haller & Davies, The Leveller Tracts 1647-1653, p. 454 (1944). On account of the Lilburn…