| Bryant v Bryant |
| 2009 NY Slip Op 00133 [58 AD3d 496] |
| January 15, 2009 |
| Appellate Division, First Department |
| George Henry Bryant, Respondent, v Dennis Bryant,Appellant. |
—[*1] Lucas & Lucas, New York (Carl Lucas of counsel), for respondent.
Decree, Surrogate's Court, Bronx County (Lee L. Holzman, S.), entered January 18, 2008,which, after a nonjury trial in an action to set aside a deed, declared the New York deed at issuenull and void and cancelled the deed, unanimously affirmed, without costs. Appeal fromdecision, same court and Surrogate, entered on or about January 18, 2008, unanimouslydismissed, without costs, as taken from a nonappealable paper.
Plaintiff demonstrated by clear and convincing evidence that the New York deed purportedlyconveying the decedent's (the parties' mother) interest in property to defendant was a forgery(see Albany County Sav. Bank v McCarty, 149 NY 71, 80 [1896]; Son Fong Lum vAntonelli, 102 AD2d 258, 260-261 [1984], affd 64 NY2d 1158 [1985]; see alsoWinfield Capital Corp. v Green Point Sav. Bank, 261 AD2d 539, 540-541 [1999]). Indeed,plaintiff's forensic document expert presented detailed testimony explaining that the signature onthe subject deed was not made by the same writer as those on the exemplars in evidence. Thecourt was presented with further testimony and documentary evidence indicating that the deedwas not legitimately executed, acknowledged, and delivered. There exists no basis to disturb thecourt's credibility determinations (seee.g. Saperstein v Lewenberg, 11 AD3d 289 [2004]).
We have considered defendant's remaining contentions, including that plaintiff failed toproduce a material witness, and find them unavailing. Concur—Tom, J.P., Gonzalez,Buckley, Sweeny and Catterson, JJ.