Le v. U.S. Bank, 5D14-578 (May 22, 2015) (Fla 5th DCA 2015)
US Bank’s Loan Payment History was used to establish the homeowner’s default and the amount of the alleged debt as is the case in all foreclosures. Often the histories contain information transmitted by one or more prior loan servicers, with only the current servicer present at trial. The question, in this case, was are these prior histories inadmissible hearsay within hearsay.
For a current servicer to establish the business records exception for information transmitted by a prior servicer under FL § 90.803(6), the testifying witness must not only testify that the current servicer verified the information it received, but must also have knowledge of the prior servicers’ record keeping procedures. See Kimberly Le v. U.S. Bank, 5D14-578 (May 22, 2015) (Fla 5th DCA 2015).
In Kimberly Le, this Court held that a payment history was admissible where the bank’s witness testified that her company’s loan boarding process (i) verifies the accuracy of the information it received from the prior servicer and (ii) confirms that the prior servicer’s entries conformed to industry standards. Id. at p.3. Unless the witness can testify to both elements, the information transmitted by the prior servicer does not satisfy the business records exception to hearsay.
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