J. Sackaris & Sons, Inc. v. Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC

14 A.D.3d 538, 788 N.Y.S.2d 424, 2005 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 411
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York·Decided January 18, 2005·Published·Cited by 5 cases

Opinion

In an action, inter alia, to foreclose a mechanic’s lien, (1) the defendant third-party plaintiff, Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC, appeals, as limited by its brief, (a) from so much of an order of the Supreme Court, Nassau County (Warshawsky, J.), entered April 18, 2003, as denied those branches of its motion which were for summary judgment on its counterclaim to recover damages for breach of contract against the plaintiff, for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against it, and for the imposition of a sanction against the plaintiff, and as granted those branches of the plaintiffs motion which were for summary judgment against it on the first, second, and third causes of action, and as granted those branches of the motions of the third-party defendants Breger-Terjesen Associates and Hunts Point MultiService Center, Inc., which were for summary judgment dismissing the third-party complaint insofar as asserted against them, (b) from so much of a judgment of the same court entered May 29, 2003, as, upon those portions of the order entered April 18, [539]*5392003, and upon stated portions of an earlier order of the same court dated August 5, 2002, inter alia, denying its motion, made jointly with the defendant United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company, also known as St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company, inter alia, to dismiss the complaint insofar as asserted against it, is in favor of the plaintiff and against it in the principal sum of $231,462.49, and is in favor of the third-party defendants and against it dismissing the third-party complaint, and (c) from so much of an order of the same court entered September 8, 2003, as denied that branch of its cross motion which was for the imposition of a sanction against the plaintiff, (2) the defendant United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company, also known as St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company, separately appeals, as limited by its brief, from so much of the same judgment, as, upon so much of the order entered April 18, 2003, as denied that branch of its motion which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against it, and granted that branch of the plaintiffs motion which was for summary judgment on its cause of action to foreclose the mechanic’s lien, is in favor of the plaintiff and against it in the principal sum of $265,000, and (3) the plaintiff, J. Sackaris & Sons, Inc., cross-appeals, as limited by its brief, from so much of the judgment as, upon so much of the order entered April 18, 2003, as denied those branches of its motion which were for leave to amend the complaint to assert causes of action to recover damages for breach of contract and trust fund diversion pursuant to the Lien Law against the defendant third-party plaintiff, Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC, and to increase the lien amount against that defendant and to amend the ad damnum clause, and for an award of interest over and above the penal sum of a mechanic’s lien discharge bond against the defendant United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company, also known as St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company, is in favor of it and against the defendant Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC, in the principal sum of only $231,462.49 and against the defendant United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company, also known as St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company in the principal sum of only $265,000. The notice of appeal of the defendant third-party plaintiff, Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC, from the order entered April 18, 2003, is deemed to also be a notice of appeal from the judgment (see CPLR 5501 [c]). The notice of appeal of the defendant United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company, also known as St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company from the order entered April 18, 2003, is deemed to [540] be a notice of appeal from the judgment (see CPLR 5512 [a]). The notice of cross appeal from the order entered April 18, 2003, is deemed to be a notice of cross appeal from the judgment (see CPLR 5512 [a]).

Ordered that the appeals from so much of the order entered April 18, 2003, as denied those branches of the motion by the defendant third-party plaintiff, Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC, which were for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against it and for the imposition of a sanction against the plaintiff, as granted those branches of the plaintiff’s motion which were for summary judgment against it on the first, second, and third causes of action, and as granted those branches of the motions of the third-party defendants Breger-Terjesen Associates and Hunts Point Multi-Service Center, Inc., which were for summary judgment dismissing the third-party complaint insofar as asserted against them, are dismissed; and it is further,

Ordered that the order entered April 18, 2003, is affirmed insofar as reviewed; and it is further,

Ordered that the judgment is affirmed insofar as appealed and cross-appealed from; and it is further,

Ordered that the order entered September 8, 2003, is affirmed insofar as appealed from; and it is further,

Ordered that one bill of costs is awarded to the third-party defendants, payable by the defendant Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC.

The appeals from so much of the order entered April 18, 2003, as denied those branches of the motion by the defendant Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC, which were for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against it and for the imposition of a sanction against the plaintiff, as granted those branches of the plaintiffs motion which were for summary judgment against it on the first, second, and third causes of action, and as granted those branches of the motions of the third-party defendants Breger-Terjesen Associates and Hunts Point Multi-Service Center, Inc., which were for summary judgment dismissing the third-party complaint insofar as asserted against them, must be dismissed because the right of direct appeal therefrom terminated with the entry of judgment in the action (see Matter of Aho, 39 NY2d 241, 248 [1976]). Those issues, which were raised on the appeals from the order, are brought up for review and have been considered on the appeal from the judgment (see CPLR 5501 [a] [1]).

[541] Contrary to the contention of Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC (hereinafter Terra Firma), and United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company, also known as St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company (hereinafter USF&G), the Supreme Court had discretion regarding whether to cancel a lien due to the untimely nature of the plaintiffs response to their demand for an itemized and verified statement of lien (see Lien Law § 38). Under the circumstances of this case, the Supreme Court’s decision not to cancel the lien was a provident exercise of its discretion.

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J. Sackaris & Sons, Inc. v. Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC, 14 A.D.3d 538, 788 N.Y.S.2d 424, 2005 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 411 (N.Y. Ct. App. 2005).

14 A.D.3d 538 (J. Sackaris & Sons, Inc. v. Terra Firma Construction Management & General Contracting, LLC) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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