| Epstein v Goldenrod WJM, LLC |
| 2016 NY Slip Op 50466(U) [51 Misc 3d 133(A)] [51 Misc 3d 133(A)] |
| Decided on March 7, 2016 |
| 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| This opinion is uncorrected and will not be published in the printed Official Reports.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 a judgment of the District Court of Nassau County, First District (Douglas J. Lerose, J.), entered March 20, 2014. The judgment, after a nonjury trial, dismissed the action.
ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed, without costs.
In this small claims action, plaintiff seeks to recover the sum of $2,100, alleging that the house which she had agreed to lease from defendant Goldenrod WJM, LLC, and its officer, defendant Janet Ritter, was not habitable because of the presence of mice. After a nonjury trial, the District Court dismissed the action.
In a small claims action, our review is limited to a determination of whether "substantial justice has . . . been done between the parties according to the rules and principles of substantive law" (UDCA 1807; see UDCA 1804; Ross v Friedman, 269 AD2d 584 [2000]; Williams v Roper, 269 AD2d 125 [2000]). Furthermore, the determination of a trier of fact as to issues of credibility is given substantial deference, as a trial court's opportunity to observe and evaluate the testimony and demeanor of the witnesses affords it a better perspective from which to assess their credibility (see Vizzari v State of New York, 184 AD2d 564 [1992]; Kincade v Kincade, 178 AD2d 510, 511 [1991]). This deference applies with greater force to judgments rendered in the Small Claims Part of the court (see Williams v Roper, 269 AD2d at 126).
As the court's determination is supported by the record—which established that defendants had treated the infestation problem—and provides the parties with substantial justice (see UDCA 1804, 1807), the judgment is affirmed.
Marano, P.J., Tolbert and Garguilo, JJ., concur.