Opinion
June 5, 1989
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Westchester County (Zeck, Ref.).
Ordered that the order is reversed insofar as appealed from, with costs, those branches of the motions which were for discovery with respect to the affirmative defenses of illegality are granted, and the matters are remitted to the Supreme Court, Westchester County, for further proceedings consistent herewith.
The Referee granted the defendants permission to amend their answers to assert the additional affirmative defense of illegality but precluded them from pursuing discovery in connection with that defense. Liberal disclosure is permitted in civil actions (Burgel v. Burgel, 141 A.D.2d 215). The requirement in CPLR 3101 (a) that the evidence sought to be discovered must be "material and necessary" has been interpreted to include "any facts bearing on the controversy which will assist preparation for trial by sharpening the issues and reducing delay and prolixity" (Allen v. Crowell-Collier Publ. Co., 21 N.Y.2d 403, 406). The defendants made a sufficient showing that further discovery was necessary for the preparation of their defense to this action.
These matters are remitted to the Supreme Court, Westchester County, for a determination as to the scope of further discovery in view of the disclosure previously conducted by the parties. Mangano, J.P., Thompson, Sullivan and Balletta, JJ., concur.