SAAVEDRA v. MOR (2021)

ORDERED that the order, insofar as appealed from, is affirmed, without costs.

By order dated March 7, 2019, petitioner in this licensee proceeding (see RPAPL 713 [7]) was awarded summary judgment, with execution of the warrant stayed to May 31, 2019. A final judgment awarding petitioner possession was entered on March 19, 2019, and, by order dated August 14, 2019, upon renewal, the Civil Court adhered to its prior order granting petitioner's motion for summary judgment. On August 22, 2019, the parties entered into a so-ordered two-attorney stipulation which granted occupant until October 31, 2019 to vacate the premises. Occupant now appeals, as limited by her brief, from so much of an order dated November 14, 2019 as denied the branch of her October 25, 2019 motion seeking to vacate the stipulation.

A stipulation will not be undone absent proof that it was obtained by fraud, collusion, mistake, accident or other ground sufficient to invalidate a contract (see e.g. Hallock v State of New York, 64 NY2d 224 [1984]; Matter of Frutiger, 29 NY2d 143 [1971]). Petitioner's right to possession was finally determined before the parties entered into the stipulation, which merely gave occupant until October 31, 2019 to vacate the apartment—more than seven months after the final judgment was entered. Occupant has not demonstrated any of the relevant grounds to vacate a contract, or that the stipulation was entered into “inadvertently, unadvisably or improvidently” (Matter of Frutiger, 29 NY2d at 150 [internal quotation marks omitted]), and the branch of her motion seeking to vacate the stipulation was properly denied.

Accordingly, the order, insofar as appealed from, is affirmed.

WESTON, J.P., TOUSSAINT and GOLIA, JJ., concur.