Criteria For Valid Testimony
A valid witness to an event in halakhah must have seen the event with his eyes or heard it with his ears. Generally hearsay from another person is inadmissible, except in rare cases such as confirming that a missing husband has died (see Agunah). A Beit Din may accept testimony only from a witness who speaks directly to the judges, not from a written deposition. A witness may not recant his testimony.
Read more about this topic: Testimony In Jewish Law
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—Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl Chesterfield (1694–1773)