Chapter 3 - §7. Exception—Party's authorized admission

• Jurisdiction: United States

§7. Exception—Party's authorized admission

A person's out-of-court statement that is made under the authority of a party is considered the party's authorized admission and is admissible as an exception to the hearsay rule when offered by a party-opponent. Evid. C. §1222.

§7.1. Overview. The rationale for this exception is that once a party gives permission for the declarant to speak on the party's behalf, the out-of-court statement is treated as the party's own admission. See 7 Cal. Law Revision Comm'n Rep. (1965) p. 1224. An important distinction exists between adoptive admissions and authorized admissions. The foundational facts for adoptive admissions (i.e., the defendant heard and understood the incriminating statement, then manifested his belief in its truthfulness) occur after the declarant's statement. But the foundational facts for authorized admissions (i.e., the defendant gave the declarant the authority to speak for him on some matter) occur before the declarant's statement. See Simons, Expert Series: California Evidence Manual §2:29 (2021 ed.). Also, the defendant must be present when an adoptive admission occurs, but his presence is not required for an authorized admission. See "Exception—Party's adoptive admission," ch. 3-B, §6.

Federal Comparison The FREs treat authorized admissions as admissible nonhearsay rather than as a hearsay exception. See FRE 801(d)(2)(C).

§7.2. Requirements for exception. For an authorized admission to be admissible as a hearsay exception, the following criteria must be met:

1. Declarant had authority to speak on party's behalf. The declarant must have had authority to speak on the party's behalf on the subject matter in question. Evid. C. §1222(a). The authority of the declarant to make a statement may be express or implied and must be established under conventional rules of agency. 7 Cal. Law Revision Comm'n Rep. (1965) p. 1224. The court may require proof of authorization before admitting the statement, or it may admit the statement subject to that proof. Evid. C. §1222(b).

Case study 1. In a murder prosecution, the evidence suggested that the defendant directed his wife to write down some incriminating information in a note that was discovered during the execution of a search warrant. People v. Von Villas (2d Dist.1992) 11 Cal.App.4th 175, 232. The note was properly admitted because the record supported the reasonable conclusion that the contents of the note represented the defendant's admissions, and his...