Opinion
2014-04-30
IMPERIUM INSURANCE COMPANY f/k/a Delos Insurance Company, Plaintiff–Appellant, v. INNOVATIVE CHIROPRACTIC SERVICES, P.C. and Park Slope Advanced Medical, PLLC, Defendants–Respondents.
The plaintiff insurer commenced the underlying actions, consolidated below, seeking declaratory relief and review by way of trial de novo of five separately issued master arbitrator's awards issued in favor of defendant medical providers on their claims for first-party no-fault benefits. While Civil Court had jurisdiction to entertain the lawsuit ( seeCCA 212–a; Brooks v. Rivera, 40 Misc.3d 133[A], 2013 N.Y. Slip Op 51191[U] [App Term, 1st Dept 2013] ), we sustain the dismissal of the consolidated actions on the merits. De novo review of a master arbitrator's award is limited to the grounds set forth in CPLR article 75 unless the award is in the amount of $5,000 or more, in which case the dispute is subject to a “plenary judicial adjudication” pursuant to Insurance Law § 5106(b) ( see Matter of Greenberg [Ryder Truck Rental], 70 N.Y.2d 573, 576–577 [1987] ). Since none of the master arbitrator's awards giving rise to these actions met or exceeded the statutory threshold sum of $5,000, de novo review was unavailable, and the individual complaints served by plaintiff seeking such relief did not state a viable cause of action. In this posture, the court was warranted in dismissing the consolidated actions upon plaintiff's motion for entry of a default judgment ( see generally Aprea v. New York State Bd. of Elections, 103 A.D.3d 1059, 1061 [2013] ).