• SCB@lemmy.world
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    11 months ago

    Oaths are generally not legally binding. For instance, you can not swear to tell the truth in court and perjury is still a thing. The swearing in is just a formality.

    Oaths are, as always, dependent upon the character of the person taking them and social consequences about breaking them.

    • stevehobbes@lemmy.world
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      11 months ago

      Is there case law on that? I’m not aware of anyone that testifies before a court without being sworn in?

      • SCB@lemmy.world
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        11 months ago

        What I’m saying is not that you can opt not to swear in, but that there are ways to commit perjury even if you have not.

        In my experience, anyone who takes the stand is sworn in, it’s just a formality that is not the reason for perjury.

        Sort of an “all dogs have 4 legs but not everything with 4 legs is a dog” thing.

        I should hold off on posting until I make more sense

        Edit: actually I’m full of shit, and you generally get charged with something lesser than perjury if you’re not under oath.

        If you give a false statement but you are not under oath or make false claims without knowledge or malice, your statement will likely not reach the level of perjury charges

        Well that’s it for me for a while lol

    • jaybone@lemmy.world
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      11 months ago

      Hadn’t thought about this. If you refuse to swear an oath in court, can they find you in contempt? Or they just like ok, well we tried, let’s move on.