In a seismic change to its evidentiary jurisprudence, New York recently enacted legislation that significantly broadens the admissibility of statements made by a party’s agent or employee.
Until now, New York’s Civil Practice Law and Rules (“CPLR”) had an oft-maligned (or, perhaps sometimes celebrated) quirk—statements of a party’s agent or employee were inadmissible as hearsay unless made by someone with actual authority to speak on behalf of the party. This was in stark contrast to the Federal Rules of Evidence, which require only that the employee or agent be speaking “on a matter within the scope of that relationship and while it existed.”
After applying its strict admissibility standard for over a century, New York apparently decided it was time for a change. By request of the Chief Administrative Judge upon recommendation of the Advisory Committee on Civil Practice, New York State Senate Bill S7093 in effect conformed New York’s hearsay standard to its federal counterpart. In particular, the new CPLR § 4549 exempts from hearsay a statement offered against an opposing party if made by “the opposing party’s agent or employee on a matter within the scope of that relationship and during the existence of that relationship.”
As noted in the Bill’s Sponsor Memo, courts applying the former standard, practically speaking, would not admit agent or employee statements into evidence unless made by someone in the upper echelons of management. As a consequence, potentially...
As Nigeria prepares for the 2027 general elections, political campaigns and online discussions are expected to intensify across social media and messaging platforms. Alongside legitimate political...