The Kuwaiti legislator granted the subject judge an important role in proof. This role is to take what he can in order to investigate the truth in the case. He has absolute authority to direct the complementary oath on his own to complete with it incomplete evidence in the case, and as a way to reassure the judgment he issues in the case. The case in which the evidence presented in the case is insufficient to fully convince him.
Definition of the complementary oath
The complementary oath is a measure taken by the judge in any state of the case on his own initiative in his desire to investigate the truth when he deems that the evidence presented in the case is insufficient, and after directing it, he has the right to rule on its basis as it is complementary to the elements of evidence in the case.
Complementary oath direction terms
The legislator specified conditions that must be met to direct the judge to the complementary oath, which are as follows:
First: There is no complete evidence in the lawsuit
In order for the complementary oath to be directed, the case must have a principle of proof in writing, testimony, or a judicial presumption that the judge was not satisfied with. If the complementary oath strengthens it, it becomes a complete proof of the validity of the plaintiff’s claim.
Second: The claim should not be devoid of any evidence
The complementary oath may not be directed if the evidence is completely absent. If the plaintiff’s evidence is not sufficient, the court must, on its own, direct the complementary oath. If the case is devoid of any evidence, the plaintiff is considered unable to prove, and the court may grant him the right to swear an oath by the defendant.
Complementary oath direction Conditions
Article 66 of the Kuwaiti Evidence Law permits the judge to direct the complementary oath in any state of the case, and for any of the two litigants to base his judgment on the merits of the case or the value of what he ruled without being bound by a specific rule in this regard. It is complementary to the other elements of proof existing in the case, and the litigant to whom the judge has directed the complementary oath may not return it to the other litigant.
The judge, according to Article 67 of the Kuwaiti Evidence Law, may not direct the plaintiff with a supplementary oath to determine the value of the defendant unless it is impossible to determine this value in another way. In this case, the judge shall specify a maximum value for which the plaintiff will swear.
Power of the subject judge to direct the Complementary oath
It was established in the judiciary of the Kuwaiti Court of Cassation that the subject judge has the absolute authority to direct the complementary oath on his own to the opponent who, within the limits of his discretion, considers that he presented evidence of his claim in the case that is more likely than the evidence of the other opponent, and that this evidence in itself is limited to the extent of sufficiency, The judge follows this path according to his conviction and reassurance, and his desire to investigate the truth.
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