Opinion
January 11, 2000
Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Ira Gammerman, J.), entered December 30, 1998, which, inter alia, granted the motion by the individual counterclaim-defendants to dismiss the counterclaims asserted against them, unanimously affirmed, with costs.
Helen Zarouhliotis, for defendant/counterclaim-plaintiff-appellant.
Thomas J. Fleming, for counterclaim-defendants/respondents.
WILLIAMS, J.P., MAZZARELLI, WALLACH, ANDRIAS, FRIEDMAN, JJ.
Defendant is precluded from asserting the counterclaims in question against the individual counterclaim-defendants, the president and treasurer of RYM International, an unincorporated association, by General Associations Law § 16 Gen. Ass'ns. That statutory provision prohibits the maintenance of any action or claims against individual officers or members of an unincorporated association until final judgment has been entered against such association and the judgment has been wholly or partly unsatisfied or unexecuted (see also, Inst. for Pub. Serv. v. Winter, 233 AD 1). Although General Associations Law § 16 Gen. Ass'ns is only applicable where the liability of the individual defendants arises solely as a result of membership in the association (see, Orchard Park Cent. School Dist. v. Orchard Park Teachers Assn., 50 A.D.2d 462, 467,appeal dismissed 38 N.Y.2d 911), an examination of the counterclaims at issue reveals that they all arise out of actions related to the official capacities of the individual counterclaim-defendants.
THIS CONSTITUTES THE DECISION AND ORDER OF SUPREME COURT, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT.