Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Admissibility definition

What does Admissibility mean? Admissibility describes, in practical terms, whether—and to what extent—a court will allow evidence about a fact in issue to be received by the tribunal of fact (jury, judge or magistrates). The judge acts as gatekeeper, deciding admissibility by reference to relevance, specific rules of evidence (for example on hearsay, opinion/expert evidence, bad character, privilege and public interest immunity), and discretionary powers to exclude material where its probative value is outweighed by unfair prejudice or where admission would compromise a fair trial. Across England & Wales and Northern Ireland, admissibility is shaped by common law and statute, including the Police and Criminal...

Admissibility of pre-contractual negotiations and statements in contract interpretation: exclusionary rule, recognised exceptions (facts, 'private dictionary', aim, drafting history, settlements, collective agreements), and rectification

Published by a LexisNexis Dispute Resolution expert

Practice notes

This Practice Note on construing contracts examines when material from pre-contract negotiations and statements may be relied upon to assist interpretation of the agreement.

When advising on contractual construction, you should have regard to:

the guiding principles applied by the court when interpreting the meaning of contracts, including the need to consider the background matrix of fact (also known as the factual matrix) and the commercial context in which agreements were made—see Practice Note: Contract interpretation—the guiding principles
the rules (or ‘canons’) of construction used to help ascertain the sense of a written contract—see Practice Note: Rules of contract interpretation
other aids to contractual interpretation such as the parol evidence rule—see Practice Note: The parol evidence rule in interpreting contracts
the admissibility of surrounding documents as an aid to construing contracts—see Practice Note: Contract interpretation—admissibility of surrounding documents

For practical guidance on the approach to adopt when confronted with a dispute over a contract’s meaning, see Practice Note: How to approach a contractual interpretation dispute—a practical guide.

Relationship between pre-contractual communications and written contracts

Contracts do not come into being in a vacuum. Before the parties finalise an agreement, there is usually some exchange of communication...

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Web page updated on 08/06/2026

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