The Burden of Persuasion in a debate or trial is the requirement that those arguing against the status quo must demonstrate that a problem exists. In other words, a defendant in a criminal action is commonly said to be "innocent until proven guilty" - meaning that the prosecution must prove guilt before the defendant can be punished. If guilt is not proven, the defendant cannot be held guilty. Debate is a formalized system of (usually) logical argument. ... A trial is, in the most general sense, a test, usually a test to see whether something does or does not meet a given standard. ... For the perennial British rock band, see Status Quo (band) Status quo is a Latin term meaning the present current, existing state of affairs. ...
See Also
Standard of proof The standard of proof is the level of proof, or level of evidence needed to convince the court of given verdict, demanded in a case in a court of law. ...
In jurisprudence, the burden of proof is the concept of holding one party to a dispute or one side of a debate responsible for producing a prima facie case.
Burden of proof is one of the most important issues in litigation, and in criminal cases it is closely linked with the presumption of innocence - the principle in most modern legal systems that an accused person is "innocent until proven guilty".
The burden of proof must be distinguished from the "burden of going forward," which simply refers to the sequence of proof, as between the plaintiff and defendant.