Cianchetti v. Burgio
Decision Date | 23 December 2016 |
Citation | 145 A.D.3d 1539,2016 N.Y. Slip Op. 08690,44 N.Y.S.3d 293 |
Parties | Jeffrey CIANCHETTI, DC, Plaintiff–Respondent, v. Phyllis BURGIO, DC, Defendant–Appellant. |
Court | New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division |
Roscetti & Decastro, P.C., Niagara Falls (James C. Roscetti of Counsel), for Defendant–Appellant.
Tisdale & Coykendall, Niagara Falls (Thomas J. Caserta, Jr., of Counsel), for Plaintiff–Respondent.
PRESENT: SMITH, J.P., DeJOSEPH, CURRAN, AND SCUDDER, JJ.
Plaintiff commenced this action seeking damages for, inter alia, breach of contract arising out of defendant's sale of a chiropractic practice to plaintiff. After discovery, plaintiff moved for partial summary judgment on the issue of defendant's liability for breach of contract, and defendant cross-moved for summary judgment dismissing the complaint. Each party contended in support of his or her requested relief that the terms of the contract were clear and unequivocal. Supreme Court, inter alia, denied defendant's cross motion based on its conclusion that the contract was ambiguous and, on a prior appeal, this Court affirmed that determination (Cianchetti v. Burgio, 89 A.D.3d 1410, 1411, 933 N.Y.S.2d 630 ). The matter proceeded to a nonjury trial, and defendant now appeals from an order in which the court, among other things, concluded that defendant breached the parties' contract and awarded plaintiff damages for that breach. We affirm.
Initially, we reject defendant's contention that the contract was not ambiguous. We previously affirmed the court's determination that the contract was ambiguous, and "[o]ur prior decision in [a] case is the law of the case until modified or reversed by a higher court" (Senf v. Staubitz, 11 A.D.3d 997, 997, 782 N.Y.S.2d 488 ; see J.N.K. Mach. Corp. v. TBW, Ltd., 98 A.D.3d 1259, 1260, 951 N.Y.S.2d 290 ). We also reject defendant's contention that the court erred, when interpreting the contract, in using extrinsic evidence to ascertain the intent of the parties. It is well settled that, although "matters extrinsic to the agreement may not be considered when the intent of the parties can be gleaned from the face of the instrument" (Chimart Assoc. v. Paul, 66 N.Y.2d 570, 572–573, 498 N.Y.S.2d 344, 489 N.E.2d 231 ), where the contract "on its face is reasonably susceptible of more than one interpretation," it is ambiguous (General Motors, LLC v. B.J. Muirhead Co., Inc., 120 A.D.3d 927, 928, 991 N.Y.S.2d 205 [internal quotation marks omitted] ), and "the intent of the contracting parties may properly be determined based on the extrinsic evidence submitted by the parties" (T.L.C. W., LLC v. Fashion Outlets of Niagara, LLC, 60 A.D.3d 1422, 1423, 875 N.Y.S.2d 367 ).
With respect to defendant's contention that the court erred in determining that she breached the contract, we note that, inasmuch as this is a determination after a nonjury trial, "[o]ur scope of review is as broad as that of the trial court" (Matter of Capizola v. Vantage Intl., 2 A.D.3d 843, 844, 770 N.Y.S.2d 395 ). It is well settled, however, that the decision of a court following a nonjury trial should not be disturbed on appeal "unless it is obvious that the court's conclusions could not be reached under any fair interpretation of the evidence, especially [where, as here,] the findings of fact rest in large measure on considerations relating to the credibility of witnesses" (Thoreson v. Penthouse Intl., 80 N.Y.2d 490, 495, 591 N.Y.S.2d 978, 606 N.E.2d...
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