Opinion
October 19, 1981
In a personal injury action, plaintiff appeals from an order of the Supreme Court, Nassau County (Murphy, J.), dated April 27, 1981, which denied her motion to reinstate a prior order of the same court, dated September 30, 1980, which had (1) directed a severance of the action as against defendant Tri-County Sewer Drain Company, Inc., and (2) set the matter down for an inquest against that defendant based upon its defaults in appearing and answering. Order reversed, on the law, with $50 costs and disbursements, motion granted, order of September 30, 1980 reinstated, and matter remitted to Special Term for an assessment of damages as against the defendant Tri-County Sewer Drain Company, Inc. Since the repeated defaults of defendant Tri-County Sewer Drain Company, Inc., in appearing and answering were occasioned solely by law office failure, Special Term erred, as a matter of law, in failing to reinstate the order of September 30, 1980, which severed plaintiff's action against that defendant and directed an inquest (see Barasch v. Micucci, 49 N.Y.2d 594; Bruno v. Village of Port Chester, 77 A.D.2d 580, vacating on rearg 74 A.D.2d 629). Damiani, J.P., Gulotta, Margett and Bracken, JJ., concur.