MBE Rules · Evidence
Adoptive admission (801(d)(2)(B))
FRE 801(d)(2)(B)
The rule
A statement is non-hearsay when offered against a party who manifested — expressly or by conduct — an adoption of or belief in its truth. Silence may qualify as adoption when a reasonable person would have denied the statement under the circumstances and the party heard, understood, and was capable of responding.
In plain English
If someone says something incriminating in your presence and you nod, agree, or stay silent when denial would be natural, that statement can be used against you. The classic issue is the silence variant: courts require the party actually heard and understood, and that the setting made denial reasonably expected.
The trap
Silence during police custodial interrogation cannot be an adoptive admission after Miranda warnings — the Fifth Amendment protects that silence.
How examiners test it
Bystander accuses defendant of the crime; defendant says nothing. Fact pattern turns on whether denial was reasonably expected.
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