Rule 43.Evidence.

Rule 43(a) starts with the default: witnesses testify live and in open court, unless a statute, the civil rules, or the Rhode Island Rules of Evidence say otherwise. Anything admissible under state statutes or the Rules of Evidence comes in, and the same standard governs whether a witness is competent to testify. Rule 43(b) allows a solemn affirmation in place of an oath wherever these rules call for one. For motions resting on facts outside the existing record, Rule 43(c) lets the court decide the motion on affidavits, or direct that the matter be heard partly or wholly through live testimony or depositions instead.

Rule 43(d) keeps witness examination orderly: only one attorney per side may examine or cross-examine a given witness, that attorney stands while doing it unless the court allows otherwise, and after direct examination, cross-examination by the other parties, and redirect, no further questioning happens without the court’s leave. Rule 43(e) requires a certified copy of any will, deed, or other recorded instrument offered into evidence to be filed in the case, unless the court orders otherwise.

Rule 43(f) decides who goes first and last: the party with the burden of proof opens and closes, except on motions, where the moving party does. When the burden is split between the plaintiff and defendant on different issues in the same case, the plaintiff opens and closes. In probate appeals, the party with the burden opens and closes but only has to put in the formal proof of execution and capacity.

Finally, Rule 43(g) tells attorneys to reclaim their exhibits — books, papers, documents, plats, and other things put into evidence — as soon as a case is finally over, with the court’s approval, leaving certified copies behind if the court directs. Anything not picked up within thirty days no longer has to be kept by the clerk. But an original paper for the payment of money, like a bill, bond, or note, cannot be pulled from the file until the clerk notes on it the outcome of the case, if that paper was the basis of the claim.