DEFENDANT ATTORNEY’S AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT OF ADMITTING LAW-FIRM BUSINESS RECORDS DID NOT INDICATE THE AFFIANT WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE RECORD KEEPING PRACTICES AND PROCEDURES OF THE LAW FIRM; THEREFORE THE COURT SHOULD NOT HAVE CONSIDERED THE RECORDS IN THE SUMMARY JUDGMENT PROCEEDINGS (SECOND DEPT).
The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined defendants failed to lay a proper foundation for the admissibility of business records (the Matter Ledger Card) which purported to describe the legal work done by defendants for plaintiff:
We agree with the plaintiff that the court should not have considered these documents because the defendants failed to submit them in admissible form … .
The defendants failed to lay a proper foundation for the admissibility of the Matter Ledger Card pursuant to CPLR 4518. “A proper foundation for the admission of a business record must be provided by someone with personal knowledge of the maker’s business practices and procedures” … . [Defendant’s] affidavit failed to set forth that he “was personally familiar with [the law firm’s] record keeping practices and procedures” and, as a result, failed to lay a proper foundation for the admission of the Matter Ledger Card concerning the plaintiff’s payment history … . Anghel v Ruskin Moscou Faltischek, P.C., 2021 NY Slip Op 00403, Second Dept 1-27-21