Opinion
April 14, 1986
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Nassau County (Widlitz, J.).
Judgment reversed, insofar as appealed from, on the law, and additional attorney's fees denied.
The appellants are awarded one bill of costs.
Counsel fees are not recoverable absent an express statutory or contractual provision therefor (see, e.g., City of Buffalo v Clement Co., 28 N.Y.2d 241, 262-263; Equitable Lbr. Corp. v. IPA Land Dev. Corp., 38 N.Y.2d 516). In the instant case, where the claims arose out of accidents which occurred in 1978, recovery of attorney's fees is limited by Insurance Law § 5106 (a) and the regulations promulgated thereunder and set forth in 11 NYCRR 65.16 (c) (8). Those regulations do not authorize the award of a "fee upon a fee", and, therefore, that part of the judgment under review must be reversed (see, 11 NYCRR 65.16 [c] [8] [x]; Hempstead Gen. Hosp. v. Allstate Ins. Co., 106 A.D.2d 429, affd 64 N.Y.2d 958). Matter of Fresh Meadows Med. Assoc. (Liberty Mut. Ins. Co.) ( 49 N.Y.2d 93) is not applicable to the instant case, as that case involved neither the amended statute nor the regulations promulgated pursuant to it. Lazer, J.P., Niehoff, Kooper and Spatt, JJ., concur.