Farkas v. Farkas

Summary

The New York Court of Appeals addressed whether a former wife’s delayed submission of a proposed money judgment concerning a Chemical Bank debt was barred by the 60-day deadline in 22 NYCRR 202.48. The court held that the prior divorce judgments authorized entry of the money judgment without further order and were outside the rule’s settlement requirement, so the rule could not invalidate the judgment. The court also upheld the distribution of marital property to the wife and reinstated Supreme Court’s order and judgment.

Holdings

1. Rule 202.48's 60-day requirement did not apply because the 1996 and 1999 judgments were simple money judgments that spoke for themselves and authorized entry of the Chemical Bank judgment without further court order.
2. Rule 202.48 could not deprive the wife of a judgment to which she was already entitled under the prior judgments; therefore, her delay did not warrant dismissal of the Chemical Bank claim as abandoned.
3. Supreme Court did not abuse its discretion as a matter of law by distributing substantially all known marital assets to the wife.

Questions Presented

1. Whether 22 NYCRR 202.48's 60-day submission requirement applied to the 1996 and 1999 divorce judgments that authorized the wife to enter a money judgment for the Chemical Bank debt without further order.
2. Whether the wife's delay in submitting the proposed 2005 judgment required dismissal of her claim as abandoned under 22 NYCRR 202.48.
3. Whether Supreme Court abused its discretion or improperly penalized the husband for infidelity by distributing substantially all marital assets to the wife.

Disposition

reversed