Also known as: Federal Rule of Evidence 805 · Rule 805 · FRE § 805 · hearsay within hearsay
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A rule providing that hearsay within hearsay is admissible if each layer of the combined statements qualifies independently under an exception to the hearsay rule.
Everett called neighbor Charles at trial. Charles testified that Everett said the insurance adjuster told him a company investigator had reported the fire chief's preliminary opinion that the fire looked intentionally set. Each layer of the statements satisfied a separate hearsay exception. The court admitted the testimony over objection.
Zenith offered excerpts from internal company diaries to show knowledge of pricing practices. The diaries contained statements by one employee reporting what another employee had said about directives from headquarters. The court evaluated each layer separately for a qualifying exception before admitting the evidence.
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The proponent must demonstrate that every layer of the combined statements independently satisfies a hearsay exception or exclusion. Failure at any single level renders the entire statement inadmissible.
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No. Availability is irrelevant under Rule 805. The focus remains solely on whether each statement layer meets an exception on its own terms.
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No. Each layer must qualify independently. An inner layer's admissibility does not bootstrap an outer layer that lacks its own exception.
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A party admission satisfies the nonhearsay requirement for that layer under Rule 801(d)(2). The remaining layers must still each meet an exception for the combined statement to be admitted.
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…rule, it should be. He feels that is mandated by Rules 805 and 403. Rule 805 recites, in effect, that a statement containing hearsay within hearsay is admissible if each part of the statement falls within an exception to the hearsay rule. Rule 805, however, deals only with hearsay exceptions. A statement based on the personal knowledge…