GERASIMOWICZ v. Pantelis Aslanis, et al., Defendants. (2024)

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Andrea Masley, J.), entered on or about February 6, 2024, which granted defendants-respondents' motion to preclude seven witnesses from testifying at trial, unanimously affirmed, without costs.

The trial court providently exercised its discretion in precluding seven witnesses listed on plaintiff's witness list from testifying at trial.  Plaintiff exhibited a lack of diligence and noncompliance with court orders requiring him to respond to discovery demands, including interrogatories asking him to identify witnesses.  Further, plaintiff did not provide a reasonable explanation for his failure to disclose those witnesses earlier in this 10–year–old litigation (see Shmueli v. Corcoran Group, 29 A.D.3d 309, 309–310, 816 N.Y.S.2d 410 [1st Dept. 2006];  see also Daniels v. New York City Tr. Auth., 171 A.D.3d 601, 602–603, 100 N.Y.S.3d 2 [1st Dept. 2019], revd on other grounds 35 N.Y.3d 938, 124 N.Y.S.3d 1, 146 N.E.3d 1160 [2020];  Ravagnan v. One Ninety Realty Co., 64 A.D.3d 481, 482, 883 N.Y.S.2d 490 [1st Dept. 2009]).

We have considered plaintiff's remaining arguments and find them unavailing.