In re Gluck

229 A.D. 490, 243 N.Y.S. 334, 1930 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 10428
CourtAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
DecidedMay 29, 1930
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 229 A.D. 490 (In re Gluck) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Gluck, 229 A.D. 490, 243 N.Y.S. 334, 1930 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 10428 (N.Y. Ct. App. 1930).

Opinion

Dowling, P. J.

The respondent was admitted to practice as an attorney and counselor at law in the State of New York, at a term [491]*491of the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department, on May 13, 1907.

By order of this court entered June 29, 1910, he was suspended from practice for the period of one year.

There are two charges against the respondent. The first is that he has been guilty of a willful contempt of court in deliberately violating an order of a justice of the Supreme Court of this State; the second is that he fraudulently obtained a photostatic copy of a deed to certain property in New Jersey and recorded the same in the register’s office of Essex county, N. J., in order that his wife might claim title to the property, with knowledge of the fact that she had no title thereto; that subsequently he fraudulently obtained possession of the property and fraudulently asserted title to it against the rightful owners.

This matter now comes before us on a motion to confirm the report of the official referee to whom it was sent to take the testimony thereon.

As to the first charge, the record shows that in 1925 there was commenced in the Supreme Court, New York county, an action entitled Melnechuck and others against Chemkowitz and others, in which action the plaintiffs sought to restrain an alleged diversion of certain church property by members of Holy Trinity Parish of the Russian Orthodox church. The respondent was the attorney for the defendants in that action. The defendants set up a counterclaim and impleaded Platon Rozdestvensky and a number of others, including Adam Phillipovsky, each of whom claimed to be the Archbishop of the North American Diocese of the Russian Orthodox church.

On May 28, 1925, respondent, as attorney for the defendants, procured default judgments which determined that Platon Rozdestvensky was not the true Archbishop of the Russian Orthodox church, and that Adam Phillipovsky was; the rights of the rival Archbishops were set forth, and Rozdestvensky was directed to deliver to Phillipovsky all of the church property held by him.

On June 15, 1925, the justice sitting in Special Term, Part II, of the Supreme Court, New York county, granted an order to show cause why the default judgments procured by respondent, as attorney for the defendants, on May twenty-eighth should not be vacated. That order to show cause contained the following stay: Pending the hearing and determination of this motion that all proceedings on the part of said defendants on said judgments and defaults procured on said counterclaims toward enforcing same, be stayed.” The order to show cause was returnable June 18, 1925. On June 18, 1925, the matter was submitted, respondent [492]*492appearing for the defendants. The moving party was given until June 22, 1925, to file affidavits. The motion was decided on July 9, 1925, and on July 21, 1925, an order was duly made and entered ' opening the default and vacating the judgment obtained as aforesaid on May twenty-eighth.

Meanwhile, and on July 1, 1925, while the motion to open the default was under consideration by the court, and while the stay contained in the order to show cause was still in force, Bishop Adam Phillipovsky, and various of his followers, with the help of Captain Gegan of the bomb squad of the New York police department, broke ■ into the rectory of the Russian Cathedral, where Bishop Platon Rozdestvensky lived, on East Ninety-seventh street, between Fifth and Madison avenues, New York city. The testimony is that Bishop Adam Phillipovsky and his followers and Captain Gegan were in the rectory about noon of that day when Valerien E. Greaves, who had been sent for by Bishop Platon Rozdestvensky, arrived. Greaves’ testimony is that respondent came to the premises about two o’clock in the afternoon. There was also present at the premises on that day Louis O. Bergh, a member of the law firm of Marvin & Bergh, with which Greaves was connected. Greaves and Bergh both testified that respondent directed the police officer to proceed to oust Bishop Platon Rozdestvensky and his staff from the premises; that the police officer, Captain Gegan, stated that the judgments had been given him by respondent with the request that he enforce them; that Greaves called the attention of the police officer and respondent to the fact that the judgment had been stayed; that respondent then stated that no stay had been issued; that a stay had been applied for but had been refused, and he insisted upon the police officer proceeding under the judgment. A proposal to leave the premises in the control of a third party until the matter could be referred back to court was declined by respondent who insistently demanded that the police officer “ go ahead and get these people out.” Respondent’s testimony is that on that day he was called to the cathedral rectory by Bishop Adam Phillipovsky who wanted his advice on a deed that had been presented by somebody; that he had a discussion with Bishop Phillipovsky, Greaves and Bergh about the deed; that he gave his opinion and went away; that he had no interest in that particular property; and had nothing more to do with it. The police officer, Captain Gegan, was not called. Bishop Platon Rozdestvensky left the cathedral rectory that day. We are satisfied from the record that respondent was the directing force behind the ousting of Bishop Rozdestvensky from the Russian cathedral rectory on the day in question, in violation of the stay contained in the order to show cause issued by [493]*493the justice sitting in Special Term, Part II, of the Supreme Court, New York county.

Respondent testified that he had no knowledge that the order to show cause contained a stay. The original order was produced. On the back of it is an admission of service, purporting to be signed by respondent as attorney for the defendants. This admission of service reads as follows: Copy received 4:35 p. m. on June 15th, 1925, Maurice B. Gluck, Attorney for Defendants.” As to this respondent testified, “ That is not in my handwriting, or any part of it, and I contend what they did do was to put that light paper over another, and forge that signature, because I was not in my office that day until close on to six o’clock, and when I came there, I found this paper.” Pincus Cashman, now a member of the bar, who in 1925 was a clerk in the office of the attorney for the parties moving for the order to show cause, testified that he served the order to show cause on respondent and that respondent wrote the admission of service and signed the same in his presence. A handwriting expert testified that the admission of service was written by the same writer who wrote the specimens of handwriting which respondent conceded were his.

Respondent testified that in the copy of the order to show cause which he received the stay had been crossed out. The testimony of the handwriting expert is against him on this.

All doubt as to respondent’s knowledge of the existence of the stay is dispelled by the testimony of Miss Minnie Israel, connected with the office of the attorney for the parties moving for the order to show cause, who communicated with respondent by telephone in an endeavor to have the motion adjourned on the return day. Her testimony is that respondent expressed a willingness to adjourn the matter if the stay were stricken out.

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24 A.D.2d 651 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1965)
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231 A.D. 193 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1930)

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Bluebook (online)
229 A.D. 490, 243 N.Y.S. 334, 1930 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 10428, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-gluck-nyappdiv-1930.