Competency

The legal fitness or ability of a witness to be heard on the trial of a cause That quality of written or other evidence which renders it proper to be given on the trial of a cause. There Is a difference between competency and credibility. A wituess may be competent, and, on examination, his story may be so contradictory and Improbable that he may not be believed; on the contrary, he may be Incompetent, and yet be perfectly credible If he were examined. The court are the sole judges of the competency of a mtnesa, and may, for the purpose of deciding whether the witness is or is not competent, ascertain ail the essary to form a judgment; 1 Greenl. Ev. § J 'ri ma fade every person offered is a competent witness, ami must be received, unless his incompetency appears; 0 State Tr. <'>r>2. In French Law. The right in a court to exercise jurisdiction in a particular case: as. where the law gives jurisdiction to the court when a thousand francs shall be in dispute, the court is competent if the sum demanded is a thousand francs or upwards, although tbe plaintiff may ultimately recover less.