Lodovico v Lodovico

2008 NY Slip Op 04475 [51 AD3d 731]

May 13, 2008

Appellate Division, Second Department

As corrected through Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Alysen Lodovico, Respondent, v Marcus J. Lodovico,Appellant.

—[*1]Mansfield & Serpe, PLLC, New York, N.Y. (Matthew S. Mansfield of counsel), forappellant.

Behrins & Behrins, P.C., Staten Island, N.Y. (Susan R. Schneider of counsel), forrespondent.

In an action for a divorce and ancillary relief, the defendant appeals from (1) an order of theSupreme Court, Nassau County (Ross, J.), dated September 8, 2006, which denied his motion,inter alia, to impose a sanction against the plaintiff's counsel, and (2) an order of the same court(Friedenberg, J.H.O.) dated September 25, 2006, which, after a hearing held upon the stipulationof the parties, granted the plaintiff's motion for an attorney's fee to the extent of awarding her thesum of $15,000.

Ordered that the orders are affirmed, with one bill of costs.

"The evaluation of what constitutes reasonable counsel fees is a matter within the sounddiscretion of the trial court" (Lefkowitz v Van Ess, 166 AD2d 556 [1990]; citingDeCabrera v Cabrera-Rosete, 70 NY2d 879, 881 [1987]). The trial court is in the bestposition to judge the factors integral to determining counsel fees, such as the time, effort, andskill required (see Feldman v Feldman, 194 AD2d 207, 219 [1993]). Moreover, "[a] courtmust consider the equities and circumstances of each particular case and their respective financialpositions in determining a counsel fee application" (Palumbo v Palumbo, 10 AD3d 680, 682 [2004]).

Here, the plaintiff adduced evidence demonstrating that she was entitled to an attorney's feein the sum of $15,000 for successfully opposing the defendant's motions to reduce his childsupport [*2]obligations. In view of this evidence, the SupremeCourt providently exercised its discretion in granting the plaintiff's motion for an attorney's fee tothe extent of awarding her the sum of $15,000.

The defendant's remaining contentions are without merit. Mastro, J.P., Skelos, Lifson andLeventhal, JJ., concur.