| Forest Hills Med. Servs., P.C. v Graham |
| 2006 NY Slip Op 51873(U) [13 Misc 3d 131(A)] |
| Decided on October 2, 2006 |
| Appellate Term, Second Department |
| Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431. |
| This opinion is uncorrected and will not be published in the printed Official Reports. |
Appeal from an order of the Civil Court of the City of New York, Queens County (Kevin J. Kerrigan, J.), entered August 15, 2005. The order granted defendant Avril Graham's motion to vacate a default judgment as against her.
Order reversed without costs, defendant Avril Graham's motion to vacate the default judgment denied and default judgment as against Avril Graham reinstated.
A party seeking to vacate a default judgment "must demonstrate a reasonable excuse for its delay in appearing and answering the complaint and a meritorious
defense to the action" (Di Lorenzo, Inc. v Dutton Lbr. Co., 67 NY2d 138, 141 [1986]; see CPLR 5015 [a] [1]). Defendant Avril Graham never denied receipt of the summons and complaint and failed to proffer any reasonable excuse for her default in appearing and answering. Moreover, defendant failed sufficiently to demonstrate the existence of a meritorious defense (Peacock v Kalikow, 239 AD2d 188, 190 [1997]). Accordingly, the order granting defendant Avril [*2]Graham's motion to vacate the default judgment as against her is reversed and Avril Graham's motion is denied.
Pesce, P.J., Weston Patterson and Belen, JJ., concur.