PATIENT UNABLE TO VACATE $2,575 JUDGMENT ENTERED ON DEFAULT
After Dr. C, a podiatrist, sued his patient for $2,575 alleging that the defendant, M, failed to pay for medical services, the latter defaulted, and a judgment issued.
When M later moved to vacate his default, the City Court of Newburg (Orange County) refused to grant him the requested relief.
On appeal, the Appellate Term, Second Department, noted that M had failed to adequately or competently rebut the process server’s affidavit of service that the legal papers had been left with a “person of suitable age and discretion” at M’s residence and that a copy had been mailed to M’s “last known residence.”
While M stated that he lived alone and did not match the description of the individual listed in the process server’s affidavit, the AT2 thought that wasn’t a sufficient response since he didn’t disavow that someone matching the “John Doe’s” description was present at the residence and accepted service on his behalf.
Since M’s challenge was viewed as “conclusory and unsubstantiated,” the AT2 thought he failed to demonstrate a “reasonable excuse for his default,” and affirmed the underlying determination. (It also thought M had failed to establish a “lack of actual notice of the action.”)
Did he get off on the wrong foot there ….
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DECISION