Appeal from a judgment of the District Court of Suffolk County, Fourth District (Richard I. Horowitz, J.), entered April 16, 2007. The judgment, after a nonjury trial, dismissed the action.

Judgment affirmed without costs.

In this small claims action brought by plaintiff to recover an overpayment of child support, we are of the opinion that "substantial justice . . . [was] done between the parties according to the rules and principles of substantive law" (UDCA 1807).

As the court below noted, there is a strong public policy against restitution or recoupment of the overpayment of child support (see People ex rel. Breitstein v Aronson, 3 AD3d 588 [2004]; Matter of Niewiandomski v Dower, 286 AD2d 948 [2001];
Horne v Pearman, 2003 NY Slip Op 51324[U] [App Term, 9th & 10th Jud Dists 2003]). While under certain limited circumstances recoupment of child support overpayments is permissible (see e.g. People ex rel. Breitstein v Aronson, 3 AD3d 588 [2004], supra; Thomas v Commissioner of Social Servs., 287 AD2d 642 [2001]), we note that the amount of overpayment is in dispute and, in any event, no exceptional circumstances are presented here, particularly in light of the undisputed testimony that the funds received were spent on the parties' daughter.

McCabe, J.P., Tanenbaum and Molia, JJ., concur.
Decision Date: October 09, 2008