Practice point: To avoid dismissal for failure to timely serve a complaint which has been demanded, pursuant to CPLR 3012(b), plaintiff must demonstrate a reasonable excuse for the delay and a meritorious cause of action.
Practitioners should note that until the attorney of record withdraws or is fired, as prescribed by CPLR 321, the attorney’s authority for the client as to adverse parties continues unabated.
Case: Splinters, Inc. v. Greenfield, NY Slip Op 04411 (2d Dept. 2009)
The opinion is here.
Tomorrow’s issue: Attorney-client relationships.
There is another instructive case here.
