Defeasibility and Burdens of Proof

Defeasibility is often related to burdens of proof. By meeting its burdens of proof, a party may defeat a claim by the other party that would have been supported had the burdens not been met. To provide an adequate logical account of burdens of proofs, two notions need to be distinguished: the burden of production and the burden of persuasion. First the burden of production is introduced, showing how it contributes to defining the logical structure of legal norms. Then the burden of persuasion is introduced, and its function is examined in adjudicating conflicts between arguments and in determining the dialectical status of such arguments and of the claims they support.