The First Department upheld the lower court’s dismissal of a mortgage foreclosure suit after the lender failed to file a default judgment within the 12‑month window mandated by CPLR 3215(c). The borrower’s failure to answer the 2018 summons left the case idle, and the lender only moved to obtain a default in 2021, three years past the statutory deadline.
The court rejected the lender’s claim that internal administrative delays justified the lag, noting that routine office tasks do not satisfy the requirement to act promptly under state law.
Property‑law scholars say the decision reinforces the principle that abandoned suits cannot be revived, protecting homeowners from lingering claims that could taint titles.
The dismissal also precludes the lender from filing a new suit should the six‑year mortgage‑enforcement period expire during the intervening years.
The case’s closure means the property remains free of foreclosure complications, but the lender must now seek alternative debt‑collection strategies.