BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION v. 385 (2025)

Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department, New York.

U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, etc., Plaintiff–Respondent, v. Wei Feng ZHU, Defendant–Appellant, Board of Managers of 385 First Avenue Condominium, Defendant.

4433

Decided: May 22, 2025

Webber, J.P., Moulton, Friedman, Gesmer, Michael, JJ.

Jonathan S. Koren, P.C., Brooklyn (Jonathan Koren of counsel), for appellant. Friedman Vartolo LLP, Garden City (Ronald P. Labeck of counsel), for respondent.

Order of the Supreme Court, New York County (Francis A. Kahn III, J.), entered on or about September 25, 2024, which denied defendant's motion to vacate the judgment of foreclosure and sale, unanimously affirmed, with costs.

Supreme Court providently exercised its discretion in denying defendant's motion, as his moving papers failed to demonstrate a reasonable excuse for the default and a meritorious defense to the action (CPLR 5015[a]). Defendant's bare allegation of law office failure does not constitute a reasonable excuse (see Tao Liu v. Sobin Chang, 227 A.D.3d 410, 410, 208 N.Y.S.3d 191 [1st Dept. 2024]). Because defendant has failed to demonstrate a reasonable excuse for his default, we need not determine whether he has offered a meritorious defense (see id. at 411, 208 N.Y.S.3d 191).

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