Opinion
2375
November 26, 2002.
Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Louise Gruner Gans, J.), entered November 5, 2001, which denied plaintiff's motion for a Yellowstone injunction, granted the cross motion of defendant for summary judgment dismissing the complaint and for summary judgment on its counterclaim, and directed an assessment of attorney fees, unanimously modified, on the law, to declare that defendant validly imposed the disputed assessment and that plaintiff's failure to pay the assessment constituted a default under the terms of the proprietary lease, and otherwise affirmed, without costs.
GALE FIELDMAN, for plaintiff-appellant.
DAVID H. OSTWALD, for defendant-respondent.
Before: Nardelli, J.P., Tom, Lerner, Marlow, Gonzalez, JJ.
Summary judgment was properly granted in defendant's favor. Applying the plain meaning of the words and phrases used in the proprietary lease and corporate by-laws, as we must (see e.g. Singer Studio Corp. v. Farhi, 183 A.D.2d 480, 481), we conclude, as did the motion court, that the disputed assessment was authorized and in all respects represented a valid exercise of the business judgment of defendant's board of directors (see e.g. Allen v. Murray House Owners Corp., 174 A.D.2d 400, 404, lv denied 78 N.Y.2d 860) . As a matter of law, plaintiff, as a sponsor and owner of more than three units in the subject building, was not entitled to a Real Property Tax Law § 467-a refund to offset the assessment amount. The attorney fee award was properly directed. We have considered plaintiff's remaining arguments and find them unavailing. We modify only to declare in defendant's favor (see Lanza v. Wagner, 11 N.Y.2d 317, 334, appeal dismissed 371 U.S. 74, cert denied 371 U.S. 901).
THIS CONSTITUTES THE DECISION AND ORDER OF THE SUPREME COURT, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT.