Fed. Home Loan Mtge. Corp. v. Trissell, 2014 Ohio 1537

In 2001 Stanley L. Trissell executed a $159,500 promissory note and a mortgage in favor of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Inc. securing the loan.
Freddie Mac filed a foreclosure action in 2010 alleging it was the holder of the note and mortgage and that Trissell had defaulted.
Attached to Freddie Mac’s complaint and summary-judgment motion were copies of the note, mortgage, and a recorded Assignment of Mortgage from Wells Fargo to Freddie Mac (executed Dec. 6, 2007).
Linda Miller, a Wells Fargo vice-president, submitted an affidavit describing business records, attaching duplicate copies of the note, mortgage, and assignment, and stating Freddie Mac is the holder and the loan is in default.
The trial court granted summary judgment to Freddie Mac; Trissell appealed, arguing Freddie Mac failed to prove it held the note and that some evidence was inadmissible.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Freddie Mac proved it is the holder of the note and mortgage	Freddie Mac produced the mortgage, the recorded assignment of the mortgage to Freddie Mac, the note, and an affidavit authenticating business records, creating a presumption the note transferred with the mortgage	Trissell argued Freddie Mac did not show possession or assignment of the original note and thus lacked standing to foreclose	The court held cross-referencing instruments and the recorded assignment of the mortgage created a rebuttable presumption the note transferred; Trissell presented no evidence to rebut it, so Freddie Mac was the holder

U.S. Bank Nat. Assn. v. Marcino, 181 Ohio App.3d 328 (Ohio Ct. App.) (recognizing negotiation of note operates as equitable assignment of the mortgage)
Kuck v. Sommers, 100 N.E.2d 68 (Ohio 1951) (traditional rule that negotiation of note equitably assigns mortgage)
Lorain Cty. Bar Assn. v. Kennedy, 95 Ohio St.3d 116 (Ohio 2002) (notarized instruments are self-authenticating under Evid.R. 902)