On April 5, 2023, the Second Department issued a decision in Philip S. Schwartzman, Inc. v. Pliskin, Rubano, Baum & Vitulli, 2023 NY Slip Op. 01812, affirming the dismissal of a Judiciary Law Section 487 claim for lack of loss causation, explaining:
Under Judiciary Law § 487(1), an attorney who is guilty of any deceit or collusion, or consents to any deceit or collusion, with intent to deceive the court or any party is liable to the injured party for treble damages. Since Judiciary Law § 487 authorizes an award of damages only to the party injured, an injury to the plaintiff resulting from the alleged deceitful conduct of the defendant attorney is an essential element of a cause of action based on a violation of that statute. Here, the plaintiffs alleged that Joseph D. Vitulli deceived the court in a previous action in 2015 by having Schwartzman sign affidavits that misrepresented Joseph D. Vitulli’s stake in JJ Realty and his connection to Linden Street Realty. However, any suggestion that the court in that action would have ruled differently absent the alleged deceit is purely speculative, and the plaintiffs have thus failed to plead an essential element.
(Internal quotations and citations omitted).