Showing 2 posts in Hearsay.

New York Appellate Court Reverses Foreclosure Judgement, Reaffirms Business Record Itself Must be Provided to Trigger Hearsay Exception

In Deutsche Bank Nat'l Trust Co. v. Ezeji, 2021 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3313 (2d Dep't, May 19, 2021), New York's Appellate Division, Second Department, reversed a judgment of foreclosure and sale, finding that although the mortgagee asserted it possessed the subject note before commencing the foreclosure and had complied with service of the statutory predicate notices pursuant to RPAPL 1304, it failed to introduce the actual business records evidencing these facts. The ruling is instructive for mortgagees and their servicers about the evidence they must provide in support of a prima facie case to foreclose. More ›

Business Records Exception Used to Attack Foreclosure Action in Maine Supreme Court

The Maine Supreme Court, using a recent interpretation of the business records exception to the hearsay rule under Maine law, has raised questions regarding mortgage loan servicers' ability to foreclose on defaulted borrowers. An essential element of proof in any Maine judicial foreclosure action includes evidence of default, and in Key Bank Nat'l Ass'n v. Estate of Quint, the Court affirmed exclusion of a prior servicer's screenshots submitted to demonstrate the amount a borrower owed, costs incurred and the outstanding principal balance in pursuit of a judicial foreclosure action. The current servicer's witness testified to establish default on review of the prior servicer's business records and under exception to hearsay, but the trial judge concluded that the witness had not established the hearsay exception with regard to records of the prior servicer. More ›