Translation:Shulchan Aruch/Choshen Mishpat/23
Paragraph 1- So long as the parties are standing in front of the judge, the judge is believed to say I found this party guilty and this party innocent. Once they are no longer in front of him, he is not believed if he does not have a written ruling. This is all with something that depends on the judges’ judgement. With respect to a matter dependent on the claims, however, the concept of believability is irrelevant because the victorious party will succeed based on his claim so long as the parties are not changing their original claims. This is all with respect to a solo judge. With respect to two judges, however, they are always believed, even if two witnesses contradict them. The same applies where they agreed to believe the words of a pashran for a set time. If, however, he already gave the pshara, he has no permission to add or subtract (even during that time), even if he says that was his intent.