Opinion
December 3, 1998
Appeal from the Supreme Court, New York County (Ira Gammerman, J.).
Given the nature of the contractual breach asserted by plaintiff and the circumstance that defendant was in default for having failed to answer the complaint, Supreme Court properly exercised its discretion in directing an expedited trial. The procedure employed by the court was, moreover, one in which defendant at the time acquiesced. Furthermore, there was no violation of due process when the Referee clarified the scope of the referral with the referring court. Finally, we find that, contrary to defendant's interpretation of the parties' agreement, the agreement's provision for reimbursement of expenses incurred in its enforcement, including attorneys' fees, was not in the nature of an indemnity and, accordingly, did not condition plaintiff's recovery of legal fees upon its prior payment of such fees to counsel.
Concur — Sullivan, J. P., Williams, Tom and Mazzarelli, JJ.