Intro to the Federal Rules of Evidence - 55

b. Personal Admissions (A)
i) Definition
Any statement made by a party at any time if i) relevant and ii) offered by the opposing party.

ii) Examples
1) Pleas of guilty in later civil or criminal cases
2) Statements made in pleadings
3) Statements to friends
4) Conduct: D’s flight after a crime as an admission of guilt

c. Adoptive Admissions (B)
i) Definition
A party may expressly or impliedly adopt someone else’s statement as his own, thus giving rise to an adoptive admission.

ii) Types
1) Explicit adoption
E.g., “What B has just said is true,” “Yes, that’s right.”
2) Adoption by silence
When silence is relied upon, the theory is that the person would, under the circumstances, protest the statement made in his presence, if untrue. The decision in each case calls for an evaluation in terms of probable human behavior (ACN).
a) Requirements
For silence to be an admission the following requirements must be met: 1. the party must have heard and understood the statement; 2. the statement was false and of such a nature that a reasonable person would deny it; and 3. the party was able to respond to the statement, but did not.
b) Silence to police accusation
Failure to reply to an accusation or statement made by the police in a criminal case can almost never be used as an implied admission of a criminal act.

d. Explicitly Authorized Admissions (C)
i) Definition
Statements by an agent with speaking authority (e.g., attorneys, partners, corporate officers, presidents) can be used against his party-principal.

ii) Rationale
Some degree of reliability. Trustworthy spokesperson.

iii) Scope
Authorized admissions include statements by the agent to the principal as well as those to third persons.

A party’s ordinary books and records, prepared by employees for the company’s internal use alone, may be admissible as admissions (ACN).

iv) Proof of authority (2nd sentence of 801(d)(2))