A New York state law question
 
1    I sued xxx supply in Pa.
 
2   they did nothing and I legally took a default judgment
 
3   I filed my judgment in Broome County NY legally
 
4   I I filed my judgment in Syracuse County NY legally
 
5   After all of the above took place xxx petitioned the court here in
Pa. and got the judgment here in pa opened so that I had to file an
answer etc.
 
6.  An atty in binghamton, now tells me that since more than one year
has passed and no papers were filed IN New York State to open or
strike the judgment there that it is now a solid New York state
judgment and I can collect against any of their assets in New York
state.
 
 
Seems too good to be true.           Is it.                           
                 Paul

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Request for Question Clarification by tutuzdad-ga on 21 Oct 2005 13:22 PDT

It appears to be true. If you filed a civil action in New York that
went unanswered and the appropriate time has passed to adjudicate the
case in the form of a default judgement in New York, that you become
the ?judgment creditor? and the defendant is becomes the ?judgment
debtor.?

"If the defendant fails to serve an answer when it is due, or within
additional extensions of time agreed to between the parties or ordered
by the court, the plaintiff may seek a default judgment. If the
plaintiff?s claim is for a ?sum certain,? or a sum that can by
computation be made certain, application for a default judgment may be
made directly to the clerk of the court WITHIN ONE YEAR after the
default. Upon submission of the requisite proof (i.e., proof of
service of the summons and complaint, and proof by affidavit of the
facts constituting the claim, the default, and the amount due), the
clerk will enter a default judgment for the amount demanded in the
complaint, plus costs and interest."

"A judgment creditor has 20 years running from the date of entry of
the judgment, or the date of subsequent payments on the judgment,
whichever is later, to enforce collection of the judgment."

Hodgson Russ LLP, Attorneys 
'Obtaining a Judgment in New York'
http://www.hodgsonruss.com/article_327.html

This article my explain it in better detail. Let me know if this
answers your questions.

Tutuzdad-ga

Dear balloo,


The answer depends on where the judgment was issued, not where you
filed it. If, as I understand you to say, it was a Pennsylvania state
court that issued the judgment, you are not entitled to collect on the
defendant's assets, since the judgment is in dispute.


On the other hand, if you wish to act on a judgment that was issued by
a New York state court, you must apply to the court for enforcement of
the judgment.

See here for a summary of the procedure.

NY State Unified Court System: Uniform Rules for N.Y.S. Trial Courts: 
Section 208.39 Procedures for the enforcement of money judgments under
CPLR article 52
http://www.courts.state.ny.us/rules/trialcourts/208.shtml#39


The above makes reference to the Civil Practice Law and Rules, of which
Article 52, Enforcement of Money Judgments, is given in its entirety here.

FindLaw: CPLR Article 52
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/nycodes/c16/a41.html


To enforce a Pennsylvania judgment in New York, you would have to file
a new case in New York. See the following article for details.

    Some states, such as New York and Connecticut, will not allow 
    the registration of a default judgment in which case a new law
    suit must be filed to enforce the judgment.

http://www.ccaacollect.com/images/enforcing.pdf
    
    
Regards,

leapinglizard