On March 12, 2024, Justice Bannon of the New York County Commercial Division issued a decision in 373-381 PAS Assoc., LLC v. Moss & Moss LLP, 2024 NY Slip Op. 30794(U), holding that the failure timely to move for default judgment was excused by the plaintiff’s desire not to disrupt settlement negotiations, explaining:
CPLR 3215( c) requires that any motion for a default judgment be made within one year and that any untimely motion be denied, and the complaint be dismissed as abandoned, upon motion or the court’s own motion, absent sufficient cause shown.. PAS has shown sufficient cause for the six-month delay as well as a meritorious claim, and the absence of prejudice to Harman. Specifically, PAS demonstrates that during that time it was actively conducting settlement negotiations with the Harman Firm, which it did not wish to disrupt by seeking a default judgment against the Harman Firm’s principal. Moreover, the record demonstrates that PAS engaged fully in discovery, and thus never abandoned its claims. PAS demonstrates that it has meritorious claims for the reasons already discussed above, and Harman cannot demonstrate that he was in any way prejudiced by PAS’s delay given his intimate involvement with the Harman Firm, which answered the complaint and has actively litigated this matter.
(Internal quotations and citations omitted).