Williams v. Knox

• Decision Date: 02 November 1950
• Docket Number: No. L-2564,L-2564
• Citation: 76 A.2d 712,10 N.J.Super. 384
• Parties: WILLIAMS v. KNOX.
• Court: New Jersey Superior Court

Page 384

10 N.J.Super. 384

76 A.2d 712

WILLIAMS v. KNOX.

No. L-2564.

Superior Court of New Jersey Law Division.

Nov. 2, 1950.

Samuel Moore, Atlantic City (Irving I. Jacobs, Atlantic City, of counsel), for the motion.

Isaac Nutter, Atlantic City, contra.

WOODS, J.S.C.

Defendant moves for an order to relieve her from the judgment entered against her in the above entitled cause, on the grounds that the failure to file her answer and counterclaim with the clerk of the court was due to inadvertence or excusable neglect, and for permission to immediately file the same and to defend the action on its merits.

The facts appear to be that a summons and complaint were served on the defendant, Mamie Knox, on December 8, 1948; that on January 4, 1949, Samuel Moore, Esq., attorney for Mamie Knox, answered and counterclaimed; that the service of the answer and counterclaim was duly acknowledged by S. Paul Ridgway, Esq., plaintiff's attorney, on January 4, 1949 (by inadvertence endorsed 1/4/48); that on January 18, 1949, the plaintiff's attorney served on the defendant's attorney an answer to the counterclaim and filed the copy thereof with the Clerk of the Superior Court at Trenton. In January, 1949, Mamie Knox instituted criminal proceedings against the plaintiff, through other counsel, and at this time borrowed the file from the office of Samuel Moore, Esq., and had the same in her possession for several months. On March 18, 1950, the defendant's attorney received from the clerk of this court, a notice advising that on April 21, 1950, the case would be dismissed for want of prosecution and it was then that he learned that the answer had never been filed with the clerk of the court. On April 3, 1950 judgment was entered in favor of the plaintiff by default, and the defendant was notified thereof and advised that execution would issue unless she paid the judgment at once. Three months later, on August 9, 1950, an alias execution issued and on August 18, 1950, the Sheriff of Atlantic County levied upon the household furniture of the defendant. On September 2, 1950, the defendant's attorney filed notice of motion pursuant to Rules 3:55-3 and 3:60-2.

We have read the affidavits of the various parties to these proceedings, as well as the briefs of counsel, and we have heard oral argument thereon.

Rule 3:60-2 provides, Inter alia, that on motion and upon such terms as are just, the court may relieve a party or his legal representative from a final judgment, order or proceeding for (1) mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect. The authority so given is to be exercised within the sound discretion of the trial court.

The effort of the defendant to vacate the judgment rests upon the claim that the failure to file the answer and counterclaim with the clerk of the court was an inadvertence or an excusable neglect. The affidavit of Samuel Moore, Esq., states that he prepared the answer and counterclaim and duly served a copy thereof upon Mr. Paul Ridgway, plaintiff's attorney, and obtained his acknowledgment thereto; that he then delivered the original and copy of said answer and counterclaim to the office of Irving I. Jacobs, Esq., who is associated with him as of counsel in this cause and instructed Mr. Jacob's secretary to bring it to his attention for filing; that he believes that the original and first copy was inadvertently placed in the office file of this action and was not sent to the clerk's office for filing; that he heard no more about the case until August 7, 1950 (19 months later), when the defendant called him and reported that the sheriff was making a levy upon her property. The defendant's affidavit states that upon being served with the summons and complaint in December, 1948, she discussed the matter with Samuel Moore, Esq., and Irving I. Jacobs, Esq., and understood that an answer and counterclaim was prepared in her behalf; that in January, 1949 she obtained the complete file in this matter from the office of Mr. Jacobs and retained the same in her possession until the conclusion of a criminal matter in the Atlantic County Court, when she returned the file to Mr. Jacobs' office; that she did not know that the original answer and counterclaim was contained in said file; that she believes she has a bona fide defense on the merits of the action; that she did not know the original answer and counterclaim had not been filed in the clerk's office; that the non-filing was an inadvertence.

It must be observed that the plaintiff was not unduly punctual in taking judgment. He allowed more than a reasonable time to elapse after answer day before he demanded the relief to which he appeared by the record to be entitled.

It has been held by our courts that when an act is adopted in this State which is a substantial reproduction of the statutes of another state on the same subject, the interpretation of the act by the courts of that state will be presumed to have been accepted by the Legislature of this State as indicating its purpose and effect. Rutkowsky v. Bozza, 77 N.J.L. 724, 73 A. 502 (E. & A.1909); Ford Motor Co. v. New Jersey Department of Labor, 7 N.J.Super. 30, 71 A.2d 727. (App.Div.1950). Rule 3:60-2 follows Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b) 28 U.S.C.A., which had its source in a comparable...