Are you concerned about making a mistake on a witness statement? Don’t worry. Our solicitors are here to guide you through the process. This recent article outlines how to write your statement in four simple stages.
If you need support with writing your statement, please contact one of our solicitors on 0203 007 5500.
What is a witness statement?
A witness statement is a signed document that records the evidence of a witness. The court may use the witness’ evidence to support a party’s case.
When you write a statement, you sign a statement of truth. In a circumstance where you knowingly provide a false statement and sign the statement of truth, the court can hold you in contempt of court. Contempt of court is a serious offence, and the punishment can be a fine and up to two years imprisonment.
How to write a witness statement?
Writing a witness statement can be daunting as you want to ensure it’s written correctly. Therefore, our solicitors have broken the process down into four easy-to-follow stages.
Stage 1: Complete the header
Firstly, the document must be headered ‘witness statement’. Under this title, you should include the following details:
- An application number and, if applicable, the opposition/cancellation number
- The name of the applicant/proprietor that the application is looking to support
- The name of the defendant/applicant for cancellation (if applicable)
Stage 2: Who is making the statement?
When making a witness statement, the second stage is to include your details. The relevant details include your:
- Name
- Address (private or business address)
- Position in the company (if applicable)
- Company name (if applicable)
- Source of information. For example, personal knowledge, company records, or others.
Stage 3: Body of the statement
The body of the witness statement is the crucial stage. Here you will outline the evidence to support the application in court.
When writing a statement, you should provide any documentary evidence to support your statement. The statement must mention and clearly label the supporting evidence.
Stage 4: Statement of truth
The statement of truth is vitally important to the statement. In this section, you must include the words ‘I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true’.
In a circumstance where you’ve knowingly made a false statement, the court can hold you in contempt of court. Contempt of court is punishable by up to two years imprisonment and a fine.
Witness statement example template:
Witness statements are so important, as they can profoundly impact the outcome of a court case. Therefore, if you’re concerned about making mistakes, don’t hesitate to contact a solicitor for assistance or draft the statement on your behalf.
We’re here to help.
About the Author
Comments
Good afternoon ,Sir I'm a Ghanaian and l need legal answers to these issues;
1. l had a child 9 years with a woman.
2. l found her a job and the nature of that job calls for early hours ie work starts at 6:00 am each day which is difficult for her to take good care of the 9 year old girl in terms of schooling.
3. l advised the woman to talk her mother if she the grandmother could help take care of the child who is the grandchild, the she refused.
4. She the mother too said because of the work l have found for her, she cannot keep my child.
5. Both of us agreed to give the child to my sister and husband, who are both Teachers to take care of her schooling, which all cost including food,shelter,medical and general up keep would borne by myself.
5. Whiles my child is in class, evidence of attendance(School Register) the woman, my child's mother came to the school and deceived the class teacher that she want to renew my child's insurance, which the class teacher did not informed the head of the school and took the child away.
6. When l confronted her to bring back the child to continue her schooling, the woman has surmount me before a District court for lack of child maintenance.
I have appeared before the judge six times ie six different dates. The Judge always adjourned the case and order that l should file my statement of witness.
Please l need your direction.
Hello Kofi, thank you for your enquiry. A member of our client care team will reach out to you via email to discuss your case further.
Hi I am looking for someone writing witness statement for immigration submit to the court could you please let me know how much is charge ?
Hello Tariq, thank you for your comment. Please call us on 0203 007 5500 or email [email protected] and one of our team will gladly talk through this further with you and provide an estimate of costs.
Yes I need to write a witness statement for a felony court charge against my hubby, with the fact that the truck they charged him with having a stolen car. He want caught driving it. That day I was driving it with our daughter never broke any laws for cop to pull me over. As I pulled into our motel we temporary stayed in, I back truck in backwards bc people kekt stealing out stuff out of it.. and the cope said bc my wife back truck in backwards that what criminal do in stolen cars.. then for NO reason he ran the truck tags.. while it had my going to jail and i.told cop that our macanic was fixing my car and let me drive his.. and my wife didn't agree to deal it was us to men so I told cop it was my deal with my macanic not hers so she went home Ne to jail
A neighbor came to my property and started a fight with me. She claimed I spat on her but I never did. The video she had was us arguing face-to-face. I did not physically spit on her or attempt to spit on her. She was in my face trying to provoke me so I could hit her. I told her to stop coming in my face and spit on me. She spits on me before she starts recording us arguing face-to-face. She only records the part of us arguing face-to-face. The argument got heated due to the fact she kept spitting on me and telling me to hit her. So she can sue me. I don't see any evidence of me physically spitting on her or any part of her body. I don't spit on people. I never do and don't plan to. The reason we even argued in the first place was because she was making a scene at midnight in front of my property and accusing people of throwing things at her at the window. I tried to ask her what happened because I heard her arguing with my cousin downstairs and she started accusing me of throwing things at her. After 15 minutes of us arguing with me and my cousin. We left her to go to the store since she refused to leave my house and still caused a scene. As we were walking we heard a white BMW car stop at my house. I believe that was her boyfriend/baby daddy. Her boyfriend parked in front of my house and she sent him to attack us with a weapon. The boyfriend chases us halfway to my house. As we were running we called 911 and explained what had happened. Her boyfriend even admitted in Portuguese he tried to stab my cousin and me with a knife while we were on the phone with a dispatcher. I have few witnesses who can vouch for me.
Hello Samendja, thank you for your comment. Sorry to hear about your circumstances. If you need legal advice on this matter, please call us on 0203 007 5500 or email [email protected] to book a consultation. Please be advised we can only offer legal advice to those in England and Wales.
Leave a comment Your email address will not be published.