Comparative law notes
The phrase has a well-established meaning - at least in US law - and essentially refers to proof that is sufficient enough to establish a fact or raise a presumption, unless disproved or rebutted. Indeed, prima facie case is a cause of action or defense that is sufficiently established by a party's evidence to justify a verdict in his or her favor, provided such evidence is not rebutted by the other party. However, the closet German counterpart, Anscheinsbeweis, lacks both a statutory definition or a consensus among legal scholars and judges as to its basic conceptual parameters. Thus, one should be careful in treating these two concepts as a functional equivalence match.