Court Opinion

ID: 5475664
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2022-01-09 20:57:05.190181+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T08:33:29.000520
License: Public Domain

Golia, J.
(dissenting and voting to affirm the order in the following memorandum). In my opinion, defendant’s default was excusable as the result of law office failure. The recognized and viable excuse of law office failure, in conjunction with the meritorious defense of intrinsic fraud committed by plaintiff, constitutes sufficient grounds to have the default judgment vacated.
It is well settled in New York that a defendant seeking to vacate a default judgment must demonstrate a reasonable excuse for its default and a meritorious defense to the action (see CPLR 5015 [a] [1]; see also Fidelity & Deposit Co. of Md. v Andersen & Co., 60 NY2d 693 [1983]; Stewart v Warren, 134 AD2d 585 [1987]). It is also settled law that, under CPLR 2005 and supporting case law, a court may, in its discretion, accept a claim of law office failure as satisfying the reasonable excuse requirement (see CPLR 2005; Vierya v Briggs & Stratton Corp., 166 AD2d 645 [1990]; Searing v Anand, 127 AD2d 582 [1987]; Alternative Automotive v Mowbray, 101 AD2d 715 [1984]). Here, law office failure is established through the affirmations of defendant’s attorneys.
*90Unlike the majority, I find that the affirmations submitted in support of defendant’s motion to vacate the default judgment established sufficient knowledge of the facts asserted.
“Personal knowledge is not presumed from a mere positive averment of the facts. A court should be shown how the deponent knew or could have known such facts and if there is no evidence from which the inference of personal knowledge can be drawn then it is presumed that such does not exist (1 Carmody-Wait 2d, NY Prac § 4:28, at 644)” (Bova v Vinciguerra, 139 AD2d 797, 798 [1988] [citation omitted]).
The affirmation of defendant’s attorney, Adeel Jamaluddin, is prefaced by a statement of personal knowledge of the within matter. The affirmation of another of defendant’s attorneys, Paul Barrett, detailed his employment with the firm responsible for the law office failure. These affirmations, in conjunction with the attorneys’ obvious familiarity with the facts of the instant case, clearly establish the requisite personal knowledge demanded of an affirmation. Defendant’s law firm inadvertently lost essential documents, i.e., plaintiff’s 2003 motion papers for summary judgment, and subsequently miscalendared the December 2004 court date, all as a result of personnel turnover (at a minimum five different assigned counsels and one law assistant). As the foregoing clearly constitutes law office failure, defendant established a reasonable excuse for its default.
In addition to demonstrating an excusable default, defendant must also establish a meritorious defense. It is alleged from the documents submitted herein that plaintiff committed intrinsic fraud. Unlike extrinsic fraud, which is intended to induce a judgment as a result of the opposing party’s default, intrinsic fraud is a more subtle concept based on a misrepresentation made to the court, in this case the alteration of documents (see generally 60A NY Jur 2d, Fraud and Deceit § 3; Bank of N.Y. v Lagakos, 27 AD3d 678 [2006]). The handwritten entries on the submitted documents herein could appear both to influence the court’s attention and to direct it to matters that plaintiff deems important, as well as to disfavor other matters. Clearly, it is axiomatic that documents entered into the record should never be altered in any way, for any purpose. Such an alteration of submitted documents constitutes a meritorious defense of intrinsic fraud. Based on the foregoing, I would affirm the Civil Court’s order.
*91Pesce, EJ., and Rios, J., concur; Golia, J., dissents in a separate memorandum.