How do relevance and admissibility relate under FRE 401-403?

• A. 403 defines relevance; 401 permits exclusion for prejudicial impact.
• B. 401 defines relevance; 403 permits exclusion if probative value is outweighed.
• C. 401 defines admissibility solely by hearsay.
• D. Relevance is not considered.

Answer: (B)

Relevance is the starting point for admitting evidence. Under Rule 401, evidence is relevant if it has any tendency to make a fact more or less probable and that fact is of consequence in the case. Once something is found to be relevant, Rule 403 lets the court balance its probative value against risks of harm, such as unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, or wasting time. If the probative value is substantially outweighed by these concerns, the evidence can be excluded even though it’s relevant. So the correct view is that relevance is defined by Rule 401, and Rule 403 provides the weighing mechanism to exclude if its probative value is outweighed by the risk of prejudice or other harms.