The Code of Civil Procedure does not include a calculation of evidence, which means that this catalog remains open. A party has the right to submit to the court all evidence regarding facts that are of material importance for the resolution of a case. In matters where the essence is to determine the expenses incurred by the party, all documents confirming the transaction will be necessary. It is obvious that the credibility of the evidence increases with its detail and personalized nature, as in the case of invoices or evidence of banking operations, which clearly shows the buyer, however, in some cases the party does not always have this type of material. In such a situation, the question arises whether it is possible to take evidence from the receipt.
The standpoint of the courts
The case law contains many examples of the use of a receipt as evidence by the party. This is most often the case in maintenance cases where a party wishes to demonstrate the amount of costs incurred in connection with day-to-day operation. The court, in accordance with art. 233 CCP, assesses the credibility and power of evidence according to its own belief, based on a comprehensive consideration of the collected material. However, despite the broadly understood freedom, in most judgments the receipt was considered by the court to be an unreliable source of facts. In the judgment of 27.11.2013 (reference number III RC 140/13), the Supreme Court emphasized that „the receipt is proof of purchase of certain products, but it does not indicate who made the specific purchase. In view of the above, it is difficult to accept that it could constitute evidence of the purchase of certain items by the mother of a minor plaintiff. ’ In the ruling of June 26, 2016 (reference number XIII Ca 95/16), the District Court in Wrocław shared the position of the Supreme Court stating that „the receipt is proof of purchase of certain products, however it does not indicate who made the specific purchase, but to some extent makes the costs of living more probable. „
As we can see, the essence of the problem is the difficulty in establishing the identity of the person making the payment. There is a risk that the person presenting the evidence has collected receipts from many people, presenting them as their own, thus multiplying the expenses incurred. Unfortunately, there are no reliable methods that would confirm or deny the authenticity of the payments presented. Accordingly, the courts are reluctant to accept evidence from the receipt. Nevertheless, it appears that when the transactions involve highly personalized goods or services regarding a person’s specific needs, the court should have no doubt as to the identity of their buyer and admit evidence in the case. We can imagine a situation in which a party purchases medicines or services consistent with the history of the disease or children’s accessories corresponding to the age and needs of the mentee, in the above cases obtaining many receipts and falsifying actual expenses would be very difficult. In such a situation, presenting a receipt to the court seems a reasonable solution. It should be recognized that this type of evidence should be taken into account by the court primarily due to the fact that it is the most common form of documenting transactions related to current daily activities.