According to Rule 703, when can inadmissible underlying facts be disclosed to the jury?

• A. If their probative value in helping evaluate the opinion substantially outweighs prejudicial effect.
• B. If the judge approves the admission of the facts as evidence.
• C. If the jury requests the facts themselves.
• D. Never; they cannot be disclosed.

Answer: (A)

Rule 703 allows an expert to rely on facts or data not admissible as evidence and to disclose those underlying facts to the jury if doing so helps the jury evaluate the opinion and the data are of a type reasonably relied upon by experts in the field. The crucial test is a balancing: the probative value of revealing the data to understand the opinion must substantially outweigh any prejudicial effect. Courts may permit disclosure with limiting instructions, rather than admitting the data as evidence. This explains why such disclosure is allowed in the first place and why simply granting admission as evidence or yielding to a jury request isn’t the controlling rule. The rule recognizes a narrow exception to keep the jury informed about the basis of an expert’s opinion without letting prejudicial information overwhelm the verdict.