From Casetext: Smarter Legal Research

Levitt v. Computer Associates Intl

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
Jun 2, 2003
306 A.D.2d 251 (N.Y. App. Div. 2003)

Opinion

2002-04751

Argued April 28, 2003.

June 2, 2003.

In an action, inter alia, to recover unpaid commissions, the plaintiff appeals, as limited by her brief, from so much of a judgment of the Supreme Court, Nassau County (O'Connell, J.), entered April 24, 2002, as, upon a jury verdict in favor of the defendant and against her on the first and fifth causes of action, and upon an order of the same court dated April 8, 2002, denying that branch of her motion pursuant to CPLR 4404(a) which was to set aside the verdict with respect to the fifth cause of action as against the weight of the evidence, is in favor of the defendant and against her dismissing those causes of action.

Schapiro Reich, Lindenhurst, N.Y. (Perry S. Reich of counsel), for appellant.

Farrell Fritz, P.C., Uniondale, N.Y. (John P. McEntee and Walter J. Johnson of counsel), for respondent.

Before: MYRIAM J. ALTMAN, J.P., BARRY A. COZIER, WILLIAM F. MASTRO, REINALDO E. RIVERA, JJ.


DECISION ORDER

ORDERED that the judgment is affirmed insofar as appealed from, with costs.

When the language of a contract is unambiguous, a court will enforce its plain meaning rather than rewrite the agreement, and its meaning may be determined as a matter of law on the basis of the writing alone without resort to extrinsic evidence (see Laba v. Carey, 29 N.Y.2d 302, 308; Weiner v. Anesthesia Assocs. of W. Suffolk, 203 A.D.2d 454). Contrary to the plaintiff's contention, the Supreme Court properly interpreted the defendant's sales compensation plan as reserving discretion in the defendant to adjust the value of the transaction upon which the plaintiff's sales commission was based.

The Supreme Court also properly concluded that, pursuant to the terms of the sales compensation plan, the plaintiff was not entitled to a commission on a proposed transaction that was rejected by the defendant.

The plaintiff's remaining contentions are without merit.

ALTMAN, J.P., COZIER, MASTRO and RIVERA, JJ., concur.


Summaries of

Levitt v. Computer Associates Intl

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department
Jun 2, 2003
306 A.D.2d 251 (N.Y. App. Div. 2003)
Case details for

Levitt v. Computer Associates Intl

Case Details

Full title:ELLEN LEVITT, appellant, v. COMPUTER ASSOCIATES INTERNATIONAL, INC.…

Court:Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department

Date published: Jun 2, 2003

Citations

306 A.D.2d 251 (N.Y. App. Div. 2003)
760 N.Y.S.2d 356

Citing Cases

Six West Retail Acquisition v. Sony Theatre Management

New York courts interpret a contract by giving unambiguous terms their plain and ordinary meaning, and a…

H. Fox Co., Inc. v. Blumenfeld

The "Option Period" was still in effect when the plaintiff elected to exercise the fixed-price option. "When…