Presumption is indispensable in modern legal systems due to its efficiency as well as the speed it brings to legal proceedings. Its purpose is to assume an unknown fact to be true based on certain known facts and thus to make legal effects which are valid under resolutory condition. Presumption can actually be rebutted during proving process and thus nullify its efectiveness. The roots of presumption go back to ancient Greece, when Aristotle laid its foundations with his concept of rhetorical syllogism. His idea was taken up by ancient Romans who finalized the institute of presumption. For a syllogistic conclusion, which means a conclusion based on life experience from known facts to unknown ones, lawyers adopted the name praesumptio facti or hominis, which is the basis for the later institute of presumption, called praesumptio iuris, and the irrefutable presumption derived from it, known as praesumptio iuris et de iure. Presumptions are contained in positive legislation, in the common law system they can also be binding through precedent rulings. In the assignment, the institute of presumption is thoroughly analyzed, its development throughout history is described, and some specific presumptions, both modern and historical, are presented in more detail.
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