What is a "question of law?"

Questions of law involve decisions as to what procedural or substantive law is applicable to a case.. Procedural matters involve what information can be admitted as evidence, what kind of questions can be asked, which witnesses can appear, and what they can testify about. Questions of substantive law  pertain to, define, and regulate the rights of parties. Questions of law are decided by a judge. For example, in a criminal jury trial, the judge must decide what jury instructions are appropriate for the jury to consider. The jury would decide the case based upon what the judge determines to be the applicable law for the particular charges. Thus in a criminal case involving a theft of property, the judge would advise the jury of the elements of the offense that comprise larceny, the possible punishment, and burdens of proof.  A question of law may also involve evidentiary and procedural considerations. A judge for example would decide if an out of court statement would be admissible for consideration, and other evidentiary issues such as relevancy and materiality.

What is a "question of fact?"

Questions of fact involve deciding what really happened in a case based upon the evidence presented and the natural inferences from the evidence. In a bench trial, the judge decides questions of fact, and in a jury trial the jury decides questions of fact. They are sometimes referred to as the trier of fact. This is not always an easy task. Evidence given by both sides can be conflicting. The trier of facts job is to listen to all the testimony, consider all the evidence, and decide what they think really happened.