Appeal from a judgment of the Justice Court of the Village of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess County (Raymond C. Chase, J.), entered July 8, 2005. The judgment, after a nonjury trial, dismissed the action.

Judgment reversed without costs and matter remanded to the court below for a new trial.

Plaintiff brought the instant small claims action to recover $3,000 for water damage to his home as a result of leaks due to the allegedly defective installation of a bay window. Defendant claimed that the leaks were caused not by any faulty installation on its part, but rather because the shingles on plaintiff's roof had been improperly aligned. Following a nonjury trial, the court dismissed the action.

Where stenographic minutes of a proceeding are not taken, UJCA 1704 (a) (1) requires the clerk of the court or the justice who presided over the case to prepare a statement setting forth the substance of the proceeding, which is "sufficiently descriptive of the testimony to make possible appellate review." In our opinion, the justice's statement herein falls far short of that standard. Moreover, the court below improperly relied upon unsworn statements of third persons, which were submitted by defendant's witness (cf. UJCA 1804). Accordingly, the judgment must be reversed and the matter remanded to the court below for a new trial (see Covart v Rossi, 2002 NY Slip Op 40389[U] [App Term, 9th & 10th Jud Dists]; Kim v Town of Haverstraw, NYLJ, May 13, 1997 [App Term, 9th & 10th Jud Dists]).

Rudolph, P.J., Tanenbaum and LaCava, JJ., concur.
Decision Date: March 5, 2007