Rockaway Improvement, LLC v. Danco Transmission Corp.

9 Misc. 3d 210
CourtCivil Court of the City of New York
DecidedJune 17, 2005
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 9 Misc. 3d 210 (Rockaway Improvement, LLC v. Danco Transmission Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Civil Court of the City of New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rockaway Improvement, LLC v. Danco Transmission Corp., 9 Misc. 3d 210 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 2005).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

Delores J. Thomas, J.

Respondent Five Bay Realty Corporation moves this court for summary judgment dismissing this action against it as respondent on the basis that it was not named or served in the foreclosure proceeding in Supreme Court and therefore its rights to possession pursuant to an unexpired lease were not extinguished.

Petitioner opposes the motion arguing that Five Bay was dissolved by the Secretary of State for nonpayment of taxes and therefore there was no need to name it or serve it in the Supreme Court action, as it was nonexistent; alternatively petitioner alleges through its attorney’s affirmation that Five Bay had notice of the proceeding since its president, Steven Stiegelfest, was a principal of 5620 Realty Corp., the prior owner of the subject premises (which was named in the Supreme Court proceeding) and was also named in his individual capacity as a defendant in the Supreme Court action. Counsel specifically argues that because Five Bay and 5620 Realty shared the same business address, designated the same law firm as their agent for service and both used the same law firm to file the deed (for 5620 Realty) and lease (for Five Bay), Five Bay had actual and constructive knowledge of the Supreme Court action and could have intervened in that action to protect its interest if it had any. Petitioner further argues in opposition to the summary judgment motion that as the 1991 lease between the then owner Eastman Associates and Five Bay was signed prior to Five Bay’s incorporation, the lease was void ab initia thereby making Five Bay at best a month-to-month tenant and therefore not a necessary party to the foreclosure action.

The Undisputed Facts

On June 28, 1991 Five Bay executed a lease for the premises known as 5620 Clarendon Road, Brooklyn, New York, with the owner Eastman for a term of 30 years. The lease commenced on August 1, 1991. On or about July 2, 1991 Five Bay became incorporated (four days after the lease was executed). In or about July 1992 the premises were sold by Eastman to 5620 Realty. On or about August 12, 1992 the 30-year lease was recorded. Five Bay was dissolved June 27, 2002 by the Secretary of [212]*212State for failure to pay appropriate taxes. In or about September 24, 2002, a judgment of foreclosure and sale was entered in respect to the premises and following a sale, Rockaway Improvement, LLC purchased the premises on or about February 26, 2004. On February 20, 2003 Five Bay sublet the premises to Danco Transmission Corp. pursuant to a five-year term lease. On August 24, 2004 the dissolution proceeding by the Secretary of State against Five Bay was annulled and the existence of the corporation revived.

The undisputed evidence also shows Five Bay was not named or served in the foreclosure action brought in Supreme Court.

Discussion

The arguments presented herein raise the following legal issues which must be resolved in order to determine Five Bay’s entitlement to summary judgment:

(1) Was the lease between Eastman and Five Bay void ab initia due to Five Bay’s incorporation subsequent to the date the lease was signed?

(2) If the lease is valid was it extinguished by the foreclosure action?

The court is mindful of petitioner’s counsel’s argument regarding Five Bay’s noncorporate identity resulting from the Secretary of State’s proclamation of dissolution. However, those arguments have become moot due to Five Bay’s reinstatement. The law is clear, the Department of State may issue a proclamation which dissolves a corporation on the basis of its failure to pay tax assessments (Tax Law § 203-a [7]). The statute specifically provides that once the delinquent taxes are paid such payments will have the “effect of annulling all of the proceedings theretofore taken for the dissolution” of the corporation, and the corporation “shall thereupon have such corporate powers, rights, duties and obligations as it had on the date of the publication of the proclamation, with the same force and effect as if such proclamation had not been made or published” (Tax Law § 203-a [7]). Courts have long held that corporate transactions which occurred during a period of dissolution are retroactively validated because the corporation’s status and its corresponding powers, rights, duties, and obligations have been reinstated nunc pro tune (St. James Constr. Corp. v Long, 253 AD2d 754 [2d Dept 1998]).

In reaching its decision on the summary judgment motion, the court will first deal with the second issue raised herein, i.e., the need to name and serve Five Bay in the foreclosure action.

[213]*213RPAPL 1311 requires the plaintiff in a mortgage foreclosure action to join, as a party defendant, any person “whose interest is claimed to be subject and subordinate to the plaintiffs lien.” Under the statute, these necessary parties include “[e]very person having an estate or interest in possession ... in the property as tenant in fee,” as well as all junior lienholders (RPAPL 1311 [1]). Thus, tenants are clearly necessary parties to a foreclosure action (see 6820 Ridge Realty v Goldman, 263 AD2d 22 [2d Dept 1999]; Polish Natl. Alliance of Brooklyn, U.S.A. v White Eagle Hall Co., 98 AD2d 400 [2d Dept 1983]; Flushing Sav. Bank v CCN Realty Corp., 73 AD2d 945 [2d Dept 1980]).

The rationale for joinder of tenants and junior lienholders “derives from the underlying objectives of foreclosure actions—to extinguish the rights of redemption of all those who have a subordinate interest in the property and to vest complete title in the purchaser at the judicial sale” (Polish Natl. Alliance of Brooklyn, U.S.A. at 404).

Thus, the absence of a necessary party in a foreclosure action leaves that party’s rights unaffected by the judgment and sale, and the foreclosure sale may be considered void as to the omitted party (see 6820 Ridge Realty v Goldman, supra; Polish Natl. Alliance v White Eagle Hall Co., supra; see also, Marine Midland Bank v Freedom Rd. Realty Assoc., 203 AD2d 538 [2d Dept 1994]).

In 6820 Ridge Realty v Goldman, the after foreclosure purchaser of an apartment building sought to maintain an action for strict foreclosure pursuant to RPAPL 1352 to cut off the leasehold rights of commercial tenants who were not joined as defendants in the original foreclosure suit. The facts were undisputed in that case that the defendant doctors held a 40-year lease to the foreclosed premises and had not been named or served in the original foreclosure action. The defendants argued that the foreclosure sale had not extinguished their rights to remain in possession pursuant to their lease because they had not been named and served. The plaintiffs conceded that defendants’ leasehold rights had not been terminated in the original foreclosure action but argued it could maintain a strict foreclosure action to now cut off defendants’ possessory rights. The appellate court in reversing the trial court agreed. The appellate court held that a tenant in possession pursuant to a lease which is subordinate to the mortgage, but who was not made a party to the foreclosure action, cannot be dispossessed [214]*214by the purchaser at the foreclosure sale, but, in such a case, the purchaser of the foreclosed property had two potential remedies—the commencement of a strict foreclosure action pursuant to RPAPL 1352, or a reforeclosure action pursuant to RPAPL 1503.

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Related

In re the Estate of Hausman
51 A.D.3d 922 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 2008)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
9 Misc. 3d 210, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rockaway-improvement-llc-v-danco-transmission-corp-nycivct-2005.