Opinion
April 27, 1998
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Westchester County (Nastasi, J.).
Ordered that the order is affirmed, with costs.
In order to successfully oppose a motion for leave to enter a default judgment based upon the failure to serve an answer, the defendant must demonstrate a reasonable excuse for its delay and the existence of a meritorious defense ( see, Siu Lung Cheng v. Leader Jewelry Corp., 246 A.D.2d 526; Miles v. Blue Label Trucking, 232 A.D.2d 382). "The decision as to the setting aside of a default in answering is generally left to the sound discretion of the Supreme Court, the exercise of which will generally not be disturbed if there is support in the record therefor" ( MacMarty, Inc. v. Scheller, 201 A.D.2d 706).
Here, the record discloses that the plaintiffs attorney repeatedly notified the defendant's attorneys that the defendant was in default, but that the defendant did not attempt to serve an answer until the plaintiff moved for leave to enter a default judgment. The defendant failed to offer a reasonable excuse for its lengthy delay in serving an answer, and has not demonstrated the existence of a meritorious defense to the plaintiff's cause of action to recover damages for personal injuries. Under these circumstances, the Supreme Court did not improvidently exercise its discretion in granting the plaintiff's motion for leave to enter a default judgment ( see, Jacobowitz Gubits v. Duffy, 236 A.D.2d 446; Bray v. Luca, 233 A.D.2d 284; Genen v. McElroy, 213 A.D.2d 511).
Mangano, P.J., Miller, Pizzuto and Krausman, JJ., concur.