Gerald Gardner Wright, P.C. & Associates v. Champion Property Management, LLC

In an action, inter alia, to recover damages for breach of a commercial lease, the plaintiff appeals from (1) a judgment of the Supreme Court, Nassau County (Driscoll, J.), dated July 22, 2013, which, after a jury trial, in effect, is in favor of the defendants and against it dismissing the complaint and awarding the defendants the principal sum of $259,012 on their counterclaim to recover unpaid rent, and (2) an order of the same court dated December 20, 2013, which denied the plaintiffs posttrial motion (a) pursuant to CPLR 3211 (a) to dismiss the counterclaim or, in the alternative, for summary judgment dismissing the counterclaim, (b) pursuant to CPLR 4404 (a) to set aside the verdict and for judgment as a matter of law or, in the alternative, to set aside the verdict as contrary to the weight of the evidence and for a new trial, and (c) pursuant to CPLR 5019 (a) to amend and correct the judgment by deleting any reference to the defendant Champion Property Management, LLC, as a judgment creditor. Ordered that the judgment and the order are affirmed, with one bill of costs. “A jury verdict should not be set aside as contrary to the weight of the evidence unless the jury could not have reached the verdict on any fair interpretation of the evidence” (Saccone v Gross, 84 AD3d 1208, 1208 [2011]). Here, the plaintiff failed to pay rent for a period of nearly three years, and the jury awarded the defendants the principal sum of $259,012 on their counterclaim for unpaid rent. Contrary to the plaintiffs contention, the amount awarded is supported by a fair interpretation of the evidence. The plaintiffs remaining contentions are without merit. Skelos, J.P., Dillon, Duffy and LaSalle, JJ., concur.