發現看不見的事實：社會科學知識在司法實踐中的運用

Discoverlnvisible Facts: The Application of Social Science Knowledge in Judicial Practice

在“看得見的”個案事實之外，還經常存在著一些不容易被直接發現，但卻客觀存在，並會對人的行動產生影響和約束，甚至會對案件結果產生關鍵性影響的“看不見的事實”。法官往往需要借助科學知識，特別是社會科學知識，才能有效地發現這些“看不見的事實”。有專門知識的人士出庭進行說明或提出意見，社會調查報告和評估量表的運用，以及法官在司法審判中主動運用社會科學知識認定事實、進行說理等，是社會科學知識進入司法實踐並助力于法官發現“看不見的事實”的較常見方式。在我國當下的司法實踐中，社會科學知識作為證據，在發現“看不見的事實”的過程中已經有一些運用，但仍存在一定的風險和盲區，需要立法上的進一步完善。可以從准入資格、可靠性和證明力、利害關係人回避、防止濫用等方面予以規定並嚴格適用，克服其可能會被濫用的風險。通過社會科學知識發現“看不見的事實”，有助于法官查清整體案件事實，作出合理判決，幫助司法打通與實質正義之間的“最後一公里路”。

In addition to ''visible'' case facts, there are often some ''invisible'' facts that are not easy to be discovered directly but exist objectively, which will affect and constrain people's actions, even have a key impact on the outcome of the case. To discover these ''invisible facts'' effectively, Judges need scientific knowledge, especially social science. Social science knowledge enters judicial practice helping judges discover ''invisible facts'' in several ways: people with specialized knowledge appear in court to explain or make comments using social survey reports and assessment scales; judges actively use social science knowledge to determine facts and reason, and so on. in judicial practice, social science knowledge has been used as evidence, which also leads to certain risks and blind spots that need to be further improved in legislation. To overcome risks of abuse, it can be regulated and applied strictly in terms of access qualification, reliability, degree of proof, stakeholder avoidance, prevention of abuse, etc. The ''invisible facts'' discovered through social science knowledge helps judges to find out the facts of the whole case and make reasonable judgment, which address the last mile between judicial access and substantive justice.