The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined that defendant’s motion to vacate a default judgment in this foreclosure action should have been granted in the interest of justice. The court explained the “interest of justice” powers in this context:
“In addition to the grounds set forth in section 5015(a), a court may vacate its own judgment for sufficient reason and in the interests of substantial justice” … . Moreover, “[a] foreclosure action is equitable in nature and triggers the equitable powers of the court … . “Once equity is invoked, the court’s power is as broad as equity and justice require” … . Thus, a court may rely on “its inherent authority to vacate [a judgment] in the interest of substantial justice, rather than its statutory authority under CPLR 5015(a),” as the “statutory grounds are subsumed by the court’s broader inherent authority” … . U.S. Bank Natl. Assn. v Losner, 2016 NY Slip Op 08560, 2nd Dept 12-21-16
CIVIL PROCEDURE (COURTS OF EQUITY HAVE BROAD POWERS TO ACT IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE, FORECLOSURE IS EQUITABLE IN NATURE, MOTION TO VACATE DEFAULT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED)/FORECLOSURE (COURTS OF EQUITY HAVE BROAD POWERS TO ACT IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE, FORECLOSURE IS EQUITABLE IN NATURE, MOTION TO VACATE DEFAULT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED)/EQUITY (COURTS OF EQUITY HAVE BROAD POWERS TO ACT IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE, FORECLOSURE IS EQUITABLE IN NATURE, MOTION TO VACATE DEFAULT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED)/DEFAULT, MOTION TO VACATE (FORECLOSURE, COURTS OF EQUITY HAVE BROAD POWERS TO ACT IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE, FORECLOSURE IS EQUITABLE IN NATURE, MOTION TO VACATE DEFAULT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED)