Appeal by plaintiff from a small claims judgment of the Civil Court, Queens County (A. Gazzara, J.), dated April 8, 2003, in favor of defendant dismissing the action.

Judgment unanimously affirmed without costs.

In this small claims action to recover damages for assault and battery, we find that the trial court's determination in favor of defendant on issues of credibility
provided the parties with substantial justice according to the rules and principles of substantive law (CCA 1804, 1807; see Ross v Friedman, 269 AD2d 584 [2000]; Williams v Roper, 269 AD2d 125, 126 [2000]). Furthermore in a bench trial, the decision of the fact-finding court should not be disturbed upon appeal unless it is obvious that the court's conclusions could not be reached under any fair interpretation of the evidence (see Claridge Gardens v Menotti, 160 AD2d 544 [1990]). This standard applies with greater force to judgments rendered in Small Claims Court (see Williams v Roper, 269 AD2d at 126).
Decision Date: October 20, 2004