BOBET v. ROCKEFELLER CENTER, NORTH, INC

To obtain relief from a default judgment, a party is required to demonstrate both a reasonable excuse for the default and a meritorious claim or defense to the action ( see CPLR 5015 [a] [1]; Facsimile Communications Indus., Inc. v NYU Hosp. Ctr., 28 AD3d 391).

The court properly found plaintiff's default excusable, particularly in view of the strong public policy of deciding cases on the merits ( see National Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa. v Diamond, 39 AD3d 360, 361). There was no indication of a pattern of dilatory behavior or evidence that the default was willful, and there was no claim of prejudice.

Moreover, based on testimony of a recurring pattern of placing wet garbage in the area where plaintiff fell, the court properly determined that plaintiff had a meritorious claim ( see Cignarella v Anjoe A.J. Mkt., Inc., 68 AD3d 560, 561).