NCJ Number
84344
Date Published
Unknown
Length
0 pages
Annotation
The lecturer looks at the rules of evidence regarding the 'law of principal agency,' partnerships, and conspiracies and outlines exceptions to the rule against hearsay, particularly the business records exception.
Abstract
The law of principal agency, developed in the 18th century, states that the principal is responsible for the agent's actions since the agent has been authorized to speak for the principal. A recent refinement of this rule states that the agent's statement will be admissible against the principal if the agent spoke at the time he was the agent and what he said dealt with activities he was authorized to perform. Each party in a partnership is reciprocally and simultaneously an agent and a principal to each other. If a partner's statement falls within the scope of his authority as the other agent's party, that statement will be admissible against not only the partner who spoke it but also against the other party. This is considered a vicarious admission. The same rules apply to criminal cases involving more than one person, or conspiracies. There are 150 exceptions to the rule against hearsay, of which 35 are well-recognized. Hearsay is held to be admissible more than half the time. An important exception is the business records exception, which came about through statute and not court decision. It includes any enterprise that maintains records on a regular basis; lack of personal knowledge by the person admitting data to the record does not make the evidence inadmissible. The lecturer cites cases where this exception was not held. For a definition of hearsay and additional exceptions to the rule, see NCJ 84342-43 and 84345.