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Question
In a civil action for recovery of an unpaid promissory note, the plaintiff offers (a) a scanned PDF copy of the note bearing the defendant’s signature, and (b) the testimony of the plaintiff’s accounts clerk who prepared the note and can identify the PDF as a true and correct rendition of the original document. The defendant objects to the PDF as inadmissible secondary evidence and to the accounts clerk’s testimony as hearsay. (a) Distinguish 'proof' and 'evidence' and explain what the plaintiff must show for there to be proof of the debt. (b) Apply the Best Evidence Rule to the PDF: when is the electronic copy admissible, and what authentication or circumstances would cure its admissibility? (c) Assuming the PDF is admissible or the original is produced, does the combined evidence amount to proof of the debt by preponderance? What additional evidence, if any, would help the plaintiff meet the standard?