Appeal by defendant Boris Revzin (sued herein as Boris Revzim) from a small claims judgment of the Justice Court, Town of LaGrange, Dutchess County (E. Caplicki, J.), entered July 9, 2003, awarding plaintiff the principal sum of $2,507.36.

Judgment unanimously affirmed without costs.

In this small claims action, plaintiff sought to recover damages upon defendants' failure to pay him for the removal and installation of a fireplace. Following a trial, the court found that plaintiff met his burden of proof by establishing that he was specifically requested by Mr. Revzin to perform such work, that he had billed Mr. Revzin for the work, and that Mr. Revzin had failed to pay him. Mr. Revzin did not claim that the work was done improperly.

In our opinion, substantial justice was done between the parties according to the rules and principles of substantive law (UJCA 1807). The deference which an appellate court normally accords to the credibility determinations of a trial court "applies with greater force" in small claims proceedings, given the limited scope of review (Williams v Roper, 269 AD2d 125, 126 [2000]). The issues at trial were essentially ones of credibility, and it cannot be said that the court's resolution of those issues were so clearly erroneous as to warrant reversal (see Dourado v [*2]Jordan, 2002 NY Slip Op 40394 [U] [App Term, 9th & 10th Jud Dists]).

We note that the issue of possible bias on the part of the trial court was raised by defendant for the first time on appeal, and is dehors the record. This court is limited to reviewing matters contained in the settled record (see Chimarios v Duhl, 152 AD2d 508 [1989]).
Decision Date: October 27, 2004