Opinion
November 4, 1999
Jonathan S. Bondy, for Plaintiff-Respondent.
Peter Rosen, for Defendant-Appellant.
ROSENBERGER, J.P., WILLIAMS, TOM, MAZZARELLI, SAXE, JJ.
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Beatrice Shainswit, J.), entered February 4, 1998, which, upon the prior grant of the motion of defendant/third-party plaintiff International Fidelity Insurance Company (IFIC) for summary judgment on its third-party complaint, entitled IFIC to recover the total amount of $66,810.76 from third-party defendant Morton Salkind, unanimously affirmed, with costs.
The undisputed evidence establishes that IFIC was not negligent in describing the work covered by the payment bond it issued to third-party defendant Salkind and his company, Dial Mechanical Corporation, the president of which reviewed and signed the payment bond. IFIC was, therefore, entitled, pursuant to its indemnity agreement with third-party defendant
Salkind, to recover expenses and attorneys' fees it incurred in its good faith defense of the action by plaintiff Aabco. The indemnity agreement, by its terms, required Salkind's reimbursement of IFIC's defense costs even though the construction project in connection with which Aabco, a subcontractor, sought payment was not covered by the payment bond.
THIS CONSTITUTES THE DECISION AND ORDER OF SUPREME COURT, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT.