On February 22, 2023, the Second Department issued a decision in Bank of N.Y. Mellon v. Selig, 2023 NY Slip Op. 00979, holding that a foreclosure action plaintiff was allowed to prove possession of the note by submitting a copy of the PSA and accompanying mortgage loan schedule, explaining:
A plaintiff establishes its standing in a mortgage foreclosure action by demonstrating that, when the action was commenced, it was either the holder or assignee of the underlying note. Either a written assignment of the underlying note or the physical delivery of the note prior to the commencement of the foreclosure action is sufficient to transfer the obligation, and the mortgage passes with the debt as an inseparable incident. Here, by submitting a copy of the PSA and its attached mortgage loan schedule, which included the subject mortgage loan, the plaintiff established, prima facie, that as of March 1, 2006, the plaintiff, as trustee under the PSA, was an assignee of the mortgage loan and the lawful owner of the note. In opposition, Selig failed to raise a triable issue of fact.
(Internal quotations and citations omitted).