Opinion
2013-01-16
ACT PROPERTIES, LLC, respondent, v. Ana GARCIA, appellant, et al., defendants.
Shari Lee Sugarman, P.C., Hauppauge, N.Y. (Frances E. Hopkins of counsel), for appellant. Druckman Law Group PLLC, Westbury, N.Y. (Hans H. Augustin of counsel), for respondent.
Shari Lee Sugarman, P.C., Hauppauge, N.Y. (Frances E. Hopkins of counsel), for appellant. Druckman Law Group PLLC, Westbury, N.Y. (Hans H. Augustin of counsel), for respondent.
In an action to foreclose a mortgage, the defendant Ana Garcia appeals from an order of the Supreme Court, Suffolk County (Pitts, J.), dated August 16, 2011, which denied her motion, inter alia, to vacate a judgment of the same court dated January 13, 2011, entered upon her default in appearing and answering.
ORDERED that the order is affirmed, with costs.
Contrary to the contention of the defendant Ana Garcia (hereinafter the appellant), her conclusory and unsubstantiated denial of service lacked the factual specificity and detail required to rebut the prima facie proof of proper service set forth in the process server's affidavits of service ( see Bank of N.Y. v. Espejo, 92 A.D.3d 707, 708, 939 N.Y.S.2d 105;Deutsche Bank Nat'l Trust Co. v. Hussain, 78 A.D.3d 989, 912 N.Y.S.2d 595;Countrywide Home Loans Servicing, LP v. Albert, 78 A.D.3d 983, 984, 912 N.Y.S.2d 96;Scarano v. Scarano, 63 A.D.3d 716, 880 N.Y.S.2d 682;Beneficial Homeowner Serv. Corp. v. Girault, 60 A.D.3d 984, 875 N.Y.S.2d 815). Therefore, the appellant failed to establish either a reasonable excuse for her default under CPLR 5015(a)(1) or a lack of notice of the summons in time to defend under CPLR 317.
In light of the foregoing, we need not determine whether the appellant had a potentially meritorious defense ( see Jackson v. Professional Transp. Corp., 81 A.D.3d 602, 603, 916 N.Y.S.2d 159;Young Chen v. Ruihua Li, 67 A.D.3d 905, 906, 888 N.Y.S.2d 412).
Accordingly, the appellant's motion to vacate the judgment was properly denied.