SUPREME COURT PROPERLY DENIED PLAINTIFF BANK’S MOTION TO EXTEND THE TIME TO SERVE DEFENDANT IN THIS FORECLOSURE ACTION, TWO-JUSTICE DISSENT (THIRD DEPT).
The Third Department, over a two-justice dissent, determined Supreme Court properly denied plaintiff bank’s motion to extend the time to serve defendant in the interest of justice:
… [A] court may, in the interest of justice, extend the time in which a plaintiff may effectuate proper service upon a defendant (see CPLR 306-b) … . Whether to grant an extension of time for service in the interest of justice is a discretionary determination, requiring the trial court to engage in “a careful judicial analysis of the factual setting of the case” and balance competing interests … . The trial court’s determination is guided by various factors and circumstances that may be taken into consideration, including the plaintiff’s diligence (or lack thereof), the expiration of the statute of limitations, whether the underlying cause of action is meritorious, the length in delay of service, whether the plaintiff promptly sought the extension of time and any prejudice that may be borne by the defendant … . This Court should not disturb the trial court’s discretionary determination unless such determination constitutes an abuse of discretion … . …
The statute of limitations had expired prior to plaintiff making its extension motion — a factor that weighs in favor of granting the extension motion. However, plaintiff engaged in a pattern of dilatory conduct throughout the action’s pendency over nearly a decade. Indeed, it took plaintiff roughly three years after commencing the action to file a request for judicial intervention and the case was administratively closed by Supreme Court on at least one occasion. Additionally, despite having been made aware of the service issue in April 2016, plaintiff did not ultimately move for an extension to serve the complaint until November 2018, roughly 2½ years later. Further, as Supreme Court recognized, the mortgage contains a significant error, which raises real concerns as to plaintiff’s ability to prevail upon the merits. In our view, Supreme Court weighed the appropriate factors and reasonably concluded that they did not militate in favor of plaintiff … . JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A. v Kelleher, 2020 NY Slip Op 06990, Third Dept 11-25-20