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THE REFEREE’S REPORT, WHICH IS MERELY ADVISORY AND IS NOT BINDING ON THE COURT, SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE COURT BECAUSE IT WAS BASED UPON BUSINESS RECORDS THAT WERE NOT PROVIDED TO THE REFEREE (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined the referee’s report should not have been accepted because it was based upon business records which were not in evidence:

… Supreme Court should have granted that branch of the defendant’s cross motion which was to reject the referee’s report. “The report of a referee should be confirmed whenever the findings are substantially supported by the record, and the referee has clearly defined the issues and resolved matters of credibility” … . “The referee’s findings and recommendations are advisory only and have no binding effect on the court, which remains the ultimate arbiter of the dispute” … .

Here, in addition to the outstanding principal amount of the loan, along with accrued interest and charges, the referee included $507,095.35 in “Tax Disbursements” and $27,705.00 in “Hazard Insurance Disbursements” as part of the total amount due to the plaintiff. The defendant correctly objected to the inclusion of these disbursements on the ground that they were calculated based on business records that were never produced by the plaintiff or submitted to the referee (see CPLR 4518[a] …). HSBC Bank USA, N.A. v Cherestal, 2019 NY Slip Op 08660, Second Dept 12-4-19

 

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BECAUSE THE B MISDEMEANOR CARRIES DEPORTATION AS A POTENTIAL PENALTY, DEFENDANT IS ENTITLED TO A JURY TRIAL (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department reversed defendant’s conviction based upon a recent Court of Appeals case which held a defendant charged with a misdemeanor which carries deportation as a potential penalty is entitled to a jury trial:

… [T]he defendant, a noncitizen, is entitled to a jury trial under the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution because the charged crime of attempted assault in the third degree, a class B misdemeanor, carries a potential penalty of deportation (see People v Suazo, 32 NY3d 491). We note that because People v Suazo was decided after this matter was argued but before it was decided, the change of the law set forth therein therefore applies to the defendant … . Accordingly, we reverse the judgment of conviction and grant a new trial. People v Ahsan, 2019 NY Slip Op 08571, Second Dept 11-27-19

 

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14-YEAR-OLD PLAYING CATCH ON A SCHOOL ATHLETIC FIELD ASSUMED THE RISK OF INJURY FROM A TWO TO FIVE INCH DEPRESSION IN THE FIELD (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, over an extensive dissent, determined that the primary assumption of risk doctrine applied to a 14-year-old experienced football player who was injured by stepping into a 2 to 5 inch depression in a school athletic field. The majority distinguished the condition here, part of the natural features of a grass field, and a condition resulting from disrepair:

The plaintiffs described the grass field on which the accident occurred as “choppy,” “wavy,” and “bumpy,” with several depressions. In other words, the topography of the grass field on which the infant plaintiff was playing was irregular. The risks posed by playing on that irregular surface were inherent in the activity of playing football on a grass field … . Moreover, the infant plaintiff’s testimony demonstrated that he was aware of and appreciated the inherent risks, and that the irregular condition of the field was not concealed … .

Like our dissenting colleague, we acknowledge the Court of Appeals’ admonition that the doctrine of primary assumption of risk “does not exculpate a landowner from liability for ordinary negligence in maintaining a premises” … . Thus, the doctrine does not necessarily absolve landowners of liability where they have allowed certain defects, such as a hole in a net in an indoor tennis court, to persist … . In this case, we do not determine the doctrine’s applicability to similar to that of a hole in an indoor tennis net, as there is a distinction between accidents resulting from premises having fallen into disrepair and those resulting from natural features of a grass field … . Ninivaggi v County of Nassau, 2019 NY Slip Op 08568, Second Dept 11-27-19

 

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COPY OF POSTNUPTIAL AGREEMENT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ADMITTED UNDER THE BEST EVIDENCE RULE; JUDGMENT OF DIVORCE REVERSED (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court in this divorce action, determined a copy of the postnuptial agreement should not have been admitted pursuant to the best evidence rule:

The best evidence rule requires the production of an original writing where its contents are in dispute and sought to be proven … . The rule serves mainly to protect against fraud, perjury, and inaccuracies derived from faulty memory … . “[S]econdary evidence of the contents of an unproduced original may be admitted upon threshold factual findings by the trial court that the proponent of the substitute has sufficiently explained the unavailability of the primary evidence and has not procured its loss or destruction in bad faith” … . “Loss may be established upon a showing of a diligent search in the location where the document was last known to have been kept, and through the testimony of the person who last had custody of the original” … . The more important the document is to the resolution of the ultimate issue in the case, the stricter the requirement of establishing its loss … .

Here, at trial, the plaintiff merely testified that she did not possess the original postnuptial agreement and that she believed it was either lost or stolen. Given the significance of the postnuptial agreement to the issue of equitable distribution, the defendant’s allegations that his purported signature on the document was forged, and the plaintiff’s failure to adequately explain the unavailability of the original document, we disagree with the Supreme Court’s determination to admit a copy of the document into evidence … , and to incorporate the purported agreement into the judgment of divorce. Mutlu v Mutlu, 2019 NY Slip Op 08567, Second Dept 11-27-19

 

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LAW FIRM SANCTIONED FOR FAILURE TO APPEAR AT A MANDATORY MEDIATION SESSION TO ATTEMPT TO RESOLVE THE MATTER ON APPEAL (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department sanctioned a law firm $750 for failure to appear at a mandatory mediation session to resolve an appeal:

Pursuant to a Notice of Reference of the Mandatory Civil Appeals Mediation Program, the petitioner-appellant’s counsel, the petitioner-appellant, counsel for the respondent-respondent Charles Schwartz, and the respondent-respondent Charles Schwartz were directed to appear for a mandatory mediation session. The petitioner-appellant’s counsel, Law Offices of Seidner & Associates, P.C., failed to insure that the petitioner-appellant appear for the regularly scheduled mandatory mediation session, without good cause, and there is no indication that the attorney who appeared for the petitioner-appellant possessed the authority to settle the matter. In this regard, we consider that the lead counsel for the petitioner-appellant sought, and was granted, an adjournment of the mediation session so that he could personally attend and yet inexplicably sent a different attorney in his stead on the adjourned date. Although parties are not compelled to resolve their appeals by settlement, parties and their counsel are required to attend mediation sessions and may not arrogate unto themselves the authority to dispense with a mediation session or to render such sessions nugatory by refusing to appear and participate in them. Matter of Schwartz (Schwartz), 2019 NY Slip Op 08565, Second Dept 11-27-19

 

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PETITIONERS SHOULD HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO FILE LATE NOTICES OF CLAIM AGAINST THE COUNTY IN THIS GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION CASE; THE COUNTY HAD TIMELY KNOWLEDGE OF THE ESSENTIAL FACTS AND THE COUNTY DID NOT DEMONSTRATE ANY PREJUDICE RESULTING FROM THE THREE-MONTH DELAY (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined the petition seeking leave to file late notices of claim should have been granted. The claims arise from groundwater contamination linked to chemicals (PFOS and PFOA) used at a county airport. The Second Department noted that the county had timely notice of the essential facts of the claims, the petition was brought three months after the notices of claim were due, and the county did not demonstrate and prejudice resulting from the delay:

… [T]he County’s alleged negligent ownership and operation of the Gabreski Airport site, resulting in contamination of the petitioners’ water supply with toxic chemicals, constitute the essential facts of the claims, which are common to all the petitioners and were made known to the County by the prior notices of claim … .

Inasmuch as the County acquired timely, actual knowledge of the essential facts of the petitioners’ claims, the petitioners made an initial showing that the County was not prejudiced by their delay in serving the notices of claim … . Moreover, the petitioners sought leave to serve late notices of claim only a little more than three months after the statutory period had expired … . In opposition, the County failed to rebut the petitioners’ showing that the County was not prejudiced by their delay with any particularized evidence … . The County did no more than assert that the petitioners failed to meet their burden to show that the late notice would not substantially prejudice the County … .

“A petitioner’s lack of a reasonable excuse for the delay in serving a timely notice of claim is not necessarily fatal when weighed against other relevant factors” … .  While the petitioners’ assertions that they were not aware of the County’s involvement in the cause of the incident does not constitute a reasonable excuse for their failure to file a timely notice of claim, the absence of a reasonable excuse “is not in and of itself fatal to the petition where, as here, there was actual notice and the absence of prejudice” … . Matter of Brooks v County of Suffolk, 2019 NY Slip Op 08561, Second Dept 11-27-19

 

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ATTORNEY FOR THE CHILD PROPERLY AWARDED ATTORNEY’S FEES OF OVER $34,000 IN CONNECTION WITH THE APPEALS IN THIS DIVORCE CASE; HOWEVER A HEARING IS NECESSARY TO APPORTION THE FEES BETWEEN THE PARENTS (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department determined the attorney for the child in this divorce proceeding properly made a motion seeking attorney’s fees for the appeal of the matter to the Second Department and the Court of Appeals and was properly awarded attorney’s fees of over $34,000. However, the Second Department held that a hearing was necessary to determine how the fee should be apportioned between the parents:

In this action for a divorce and ancillary relief, the Supreme Court awarded sole legal and physical custody of the parties’ minor children to the defendant, without a hearing, under the adequate relevant information standard. This Court affirmed the order … , and the plaintiff appealed to the Court of Appeals. The attorney for the children (hereinafter the AFC) opposed the plaintiff’s appeal, but proposed a new standard for the need for evidentiary hearings in custody cases. The Court of Appeals reversed this Court’s order, rejecting the adequate relevant information standard, and determined that an evidentiary hearing was required in this particular case … . …

Contrary to the plaintiff’s contention, the difference in opinion between this Court (see Matter of Plovnick v Klinger, 10 AD3d 84) and the Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department (see Redder v Redder, 17 AD3d 10), as to whether attorneys for children may be compensated directly by the children’s parents, rather than by the State, does not give rise to a constitutional claim under the equal protection clauses of the state and federal constitutions. …

… [T]he plaintiff’s motion to modify the parties’ apportionment of responsibility for the AFC’s fees should not have been decided without an evidentiary hearing. We take no position on whether the equal split between the parties was appropriate, but because the affidavits submitted by the parties provided sharply conflicting reports on the parties’ finances … and there was “no evidence in the record that the financial circumstances of the parties [had] ever been considered” … . Lee v Rogers, 2019 NY Slip Op 08559, Second Dept 11-27-19

 

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PLAINTIFF COULD NOT PROCEED ON A THEORY NOT RAISED IN THE NOTICE OF CLAIM; ALTHOUGH THE ISSUE WAS RAISED FOR THE FIRST TIME ON APPEAL, IT COULD BE CONSIDERED (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, held that plaintiff-student could not proceed based upon a theory not included in the notice of claim. Plaintiff, who alleged she was sexually assaulted at a BOCES facility, did not allege in her notice of claim that the school district (North Shore), which did not have custody of her when she was assaulted, was also liable because it had formulated an Individualized Education Program for her. The court noted that the issue, although raised for the first time on appeal, could be considered because it was a question of law that could not have been avoided by the lower court:

“A plaintiff seeking to recover in tort against a municipality must serve a notice of claim to enable authorities to investigate, collect evidence and evaluate the merits of the claim” … . “A notice of claim must set forth, inter alia, the nature of the claim, and the time, place, and manner in which the claim arose” … . “[A] mistake, omission, irregularity or defect made in good faith in the notice of claim required to be served by [General Municipal Law § 50-e], not pertaining to the manner or time of service thereof, may be corrected, supplied or disregarded, as the case may be, in the discretion of the court, provided it shall appear that the other party was not prejudiced thereby” (General Municipal Law § 50-e[6]). Under General Municipal Law § 50-e(6), “[a] notice of claim may be amended only to correct good faith and nonprejudicial technical mistakes, omissions, or defects, not to substantively change the nature of the claim or the theory of liability” … .

We agree with North Shore that the plaintiff may not proceed under the theory that North Shore negligently failed to formulate an appropriate IEP for her, as the plaintiff did not include this theory in her notice of claim. Although North Shore did not raise this argument before the Supreme Court, we may consider it because “it presents an issue of law that appears on the face of the record, and could not have been avoided had it been raised at the proper juncture” … . In her notice of claim, the only theory of liability that the plaintiff asserted was negligent supervision. In opposition to North Shore’s motion for summary judgment, the plaintiff contended for the first time that North Shore had negligently failed to formulate an appropriate IEP for her. This was not a technical change, but was an impermissible substantive change to the theory of liability … . I. T. K. v Nassau Boces Educ. Found., Inc., 2019 NY Slip Op 08557, Second Dept 11-27-19

 

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PLAINTIFF BANK DID NOT DEMONSTRATE COMPLIANCE WITH THE NOTICE PROVISIONS OF REAL PROPERTY ACTIONS AND PROCEEDINGS LAW (RPAPL) 1304 (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff bank did not demonstrate compliance with the notice provisions of Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law (RPAPL) 1304:

… [T]he plaintiff failed to establish, prima facie, that it complied with RPAPL 1304 … . Although Menyweather [an assistant secretary employed by Nationstar Mortgage LLC, the plaintiff’s loan servicer] stated in his affidavit that the RPAPL 1304 notices were mailed by regular and certified mail, and attached copies of the notices, the plaintiff failed to attach, as exhibits to the motion, any documents establishing that the notices were actually mailed … . The plaintiff failed to submit a copy of any United States Post Office document indicating that the notice was sent by registered or certified mail as required by the statute … . Further, although Menyweather attested that he had personal knowledge of the loan servicer’s records, and that those records included the records of the prior servicer, Bank of America, Menyweather did not attest to knowledge of the mailing practices of Bank of America, the entity that allegedly sent the 90-day notices to the defendant … . Since the plaintiff failed to provide evidence of the a ctual mailing, or evidence of a standard office mailing procedure designed to ensure that the items were properly addressed and mailed, sworn to by someone with personal knowledge of the procedure, the plaintiff failed to establish its strict compliance with RPAPL 1304 … . HSBC Bank USA, N.A. v Sawh, 2019 NY Slip Op 08556, Second Dept 11-27-19

 

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PLAINTIFF BANK DID NOT SUBMIT SUFFICIENT PROOF OF ITS STANDING TO BRING THE FORECLOSURE ACTION (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff bank did not submit sufficient proof of standing to bring the foreclosure action:

… [W]hile the plaintiff alleged that the note had been endorsed to it, the plaintiff failed to submit sufficient evidence to demonstrate that a copy of the note with the endorsement was attached to the complaint. The only copy of the complaint that appears in the record before us was submitted as an exhibit in support of Williams’s [defendant’s] motion, and the version of the note accompanying that copy of the complaint did not include the endorsement. The plaintiff’s attempt to establish standing through the submission of the affidavit of Morgan Battle Ames, a contract management coordinator for the plaintiff’s loan servicer, was also insufficient. Ames stated that she had “personal knowledge of the stated facts and circumstances and books and records maintained by [the loan servicer],” and that the “information in this affidavit is taken from [the loan servicer’s] business records,” which were “recorded by persons with personal knowledge of the information in the business record.” Since Ames failed to attest that she was personally familiar with the record-keeping practices and procedures of the entity that generated the subject business records, she failed to demonstrate … . HSBC Bank USA, N.A. v Williams, 2019 NY Slip Op 08554, Second Dept 11-27-19

 

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