Great Am. Ins. Cos. v Bearcat Fin. Servs., Inc.
2011 NY Slip Op 09168 [90 AD3d 533]
Dcmbr 20, 2011
Appellate Division, First Department
As corrected through Wednesday, February 1, 2012


Great American Insurance Companies et al.,Plaintiffs,
v
Bearcat Financial Services, Inc., et al., Defendants. Patrick Hayes,Third-Party Plaintiff-Appellant, v Dresdner, Kleinwort, Wasserstein Services, LLC, Third-PartyDefendant-Respondent.

[*1]Law Offices of Peter A. Hurwitz, PLLC, New City (Peter A. Hurwitz of counsel), forappellant.

Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, New York (Ayanna Lewis-Gruss of counsel), forrespondent.

Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Ira Gammerman, J.H.O.), entered May 3, 2010,which, to the extent appealed from as limited by the briefs, granted the motion of third-partydefendant Dresdner to dismiss the third-party complaint, award Dresdner its costs, and imposesanctions on defendant/third-party plaintiff Hayes and his counsel, unanimously affirmed, withcosts.

Because the first-party complaint alleges that Hayes is liable based only on his ownwrongdoing, his third-party claim that he is entitled to common-law indemnification fromDresdner does not state a cause of action (Mathis v Central Park Conservancy, 251 AD2d171, 172 [1998]). Accordingly, the third-party complaint was properly dismissed.

Because the third-party claim was plainly defective, the motion court providently exercisedits discretion in determining that it was frivolous and imposing sanctions and costs (see22 NYCRR 130-1.1; Pickens vCastro, 55 AD3d 443 [2008]).

We have considered Hayes's remaining contentions and find them unavailing.Concur—Gonzalez, P.J., Mazzarelli, Andrias, Sweeny and RomÁn, JJ.


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