Burden of proof
Updated 2026-09-29
Burden of proof is the legal duty to prove a fact or claim. In most civil cases, including a claim against a scammer, the burden falls on the plaintiff, the person bringing the case, to prove their claim is more likely true than not.
This is different from a criminal case, where the prosecution must prove guilt to a much higher standard, “beyond reasonable doubt”, because the consequences include punishment such as imprisonment.
In a civil scam claim, the standard applied is the balance of probabilities, a lower threshold. This is one reason a civil claim can sometimes succeed even where a criminal case has not yet concluded.
When it matters
Understanding what needs to be proven, and to what standard, shapes what evidence a lawyer will ask a victim to gather early on.
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