Vacating a Default Judgment in New York
A Judgment Is Not the End
A default judgment is not a final ruling on the merits. It is a procedural outcome that follows from a missed deadline, and New York law gives a business the ability to ask the court to undo it. The path back into the case is narrow, the timing matters, and the burden of proof falls on the defendant. But when the right defense is presented in the right way, New York courts vacate default judgments every term in Kings, New York, Queens, and Richmond County. Vacating is one piece of business litigation defense for owners who have been hit with judgments they never had the chance to fight.
What follows is what actually works on a motion to vacate under CPLR 5015, when each ground applies, how timing reshapes the analysis, and the procedural mistakes that sink otherwise strong motions before the judge ever reaches the substantive question of whether your business has a real defense to the underlying claim. The starting point is four commonly relevant statutory grounds, which decide everything that follows in the motion practice that defends your business in this state. The motion frame matters because vacating reopens the case explored in the default judgment process in New York.
Four Common Grounds Under CPLR 5015
CPLR 5015(a) lists five grounds for relief. The four below commonly arise in default practice; subdivision (a)(5) separately covers reversal, modification, or vacatur of a prior judgment on which the challenged judgment is based. Each ground carries its own proof requirements, its own time limit, and its own tactical value. The right ground depends on what actually happened in your case, not on what reads best in the abstract. Picking the wrong ground burns the motion and often forecloses the right one.
CPLR 5015(a)(1). The most common ground. Requires a reasonable excuse for missing the deadline plus a meritorious defense to the underlying claim. Both prongs are required. One year after service of the judgment with written notice of entry, or from entry if the moving party entered it.
CPLR 5015(a)(2). Evidence that existed at the time of default but could not have been discovered with reasonable diligence. Must be material enough that the result would likely change. Rarely used in default practice.
CPLR 5015(a)(3). Fraud by the adverse party in obtaining the judgment. False affidavits of service, manufactured documents, or misrepresentation to the court qualify. Requires specificity and proof, not suspicion.
CPLR 5015(a)(4). The court never had personal jurisdiction over the defendant. Raised when service of process was defective. No time limit. No meritorious defense requirement. The strongest ground when facts support it.
The Reasonable Excuse Test
The first prong of CPLR 5015(a)(1) is reasonable excuse for the default. Courts in this state read it through the lens of two competing policies. The policy of deciding cases on their merits favors vacating. The policy that procedural deadlines mean something real favors the judgment. The answer turns on detailed, sworn facts about what happened and why.
Excuses that courts in Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, and Staten Island have accepted include documented illness of the principal or counsel, detailed law office failure under CPLR 2005 with specific facts about which staff member missed which entry on which date, a mailing or service mishap supported by USPS records, a bona fide settlement negotiation interrupted by an unrelated default motion, and lack of actual notice where contact information had been updated with the court but never propagated. The common thread is specificity. A reasonable excuse is a story with names, dates, and documents.
Excuses that fail are the opposite. Bare assertions that the case did not seem serious. Generic claims of being too busy. Conclusory law office failure with no detail. A pattern of dilatory conduct in the same case or in others. Excuses raised eighteen months after entry with no urgency shown earlier in the timeline. The closer the motion is filed to the date of entry, the more leniently New York courts read the excuse. Motions filed within thirty days land differently than motions filed at month eleven. For deeper background, see how missed deadlines factor into a vacate motion.
The Meritorious Defense Test
The second prong of CPLR 5015(a)(1) is a meritorious defense. New York courts do not require proof that the defendant will win at trial. They require enough sworn detail to show that if the case proceeds, a fact-finder could reasonably decide in the defendant's favor on at least one element of the claim. The standard is lower than most owners expect at first, but the execution is unforgiving.
What satisfies the meritorious defense burden in New York includes a signed contract that contradicts what the plaintiff filed, sworn statements with specific dates and amounts that dispute the breach claim, documentary evidence of payment, performance, or release, a defense the plaintiff failed to anticipate and plead around, and statute of limitations or jurisdictional objections that defeat the claim on its face. The defense has to be readable in the moving papers without testimony.
A meritorious defense is not "the plaintiff might be wrong" or "the amount seems too high." It is a specific factual or legal basis to deny relief, presented in sworn form with documents attached. Bare denials never satisfy this prong, and motions built on conclusory affidavits get denied even when the underlying excuse is strong. A frequent path to merit is attacking the plaintiff's damages presentation. For background on the underlying damages rules, see limits on recoverable contract damages.
The Jurisdictional Defense
The strongest defense under CPLR 5015 is lack of personal jurisdiction. Unlike the excusable default path, jurisdictional defects under CPLR 5015(a)(4) have no one-year deadline, no meritorious defense requirement, and no exercise of judicial discretion. If the court did not have personal jurisdiction over the defendant when the default was entered, the judgment is void from the start, and New York courts must vacate it once the lack of jurisdiction is shown to the judge in proper form.
For corporations and LLCs, examine service under the rules applicable to that entity. A fabricated affidavit or delivery to a person not authorized by the applicable rule may establish a jurisdictional defect. By contrast, valid service through the Secretary of State is not void merely because the business left an old address on file and never received the forwarded papers. That non-notice may instead support CPLR 317 relief. CPLR 308 governs service on natural persons, not a universal substitute method for corporations and LLCs.
Jurisdictional defense is fact-intensive and almost always turns on the affidavit of service. Pulling the file, comparing what the process server swore happened against what your records show, identifying the specific defect, and presenting that defect with sworn proof is what wins these motions. See when service of process on a business is defective for a deeper breakdown of the rules.
Timing and Filing the Motion
Different grounds use different clocks. For excusable default under CPLR 5015(a)(1), the year ordinarily runs from service of the judgment with written notice of entry, or from entry if the moving party entered it. CPLR 317 runs from knowledge of entry, subject to its five-year outer limit. Do not wait for a deadline: prompt action and an explanation for delay matter.
Act Promptly After Discovery
Prompt action supports a request for discretionary relief, but there is no automatic 30-day safe harbor. An excusable-default motion still needs a reasonable excuse and a potentially meritorious defense. Obtain the judgment, service papers, and any notice of entry before selecting the ground and calculating the deadline.
The CPLR 5015(a)(1) Deadline
The one-year period ordinarily starts when the moving party is served with the judgment and written notice of entry, not merely when the clerk enters it. If the moving party entered the judgment, the period runs from entry. A timely motion still requires a reasonable excuse, a potentially meritorious defense, and an explanation of any delay.
When More Than a Year Has Passed
A judgment more than one year old is not automatically beyond challenge. First determine whether the applicable notice-of-entry clock began. Grounds under CPLR 5015(a)(2) and (a)(3) are not governed by (a)(1)’s statutory year, but require a motion within a reasonable time and their own proof. Jurisdictional relief and CPLR 317 have different requirements. Inherent interest-of-justice relief is exceptional, not a substitute for timely action.
CPLR 317 Alternative
A separate path for qualifying defendants served other than by personal delivery to them or their CPLR 318-designated agent, who did not personally receive notice of the summons in time to defend. Allows up to one year from learning of the judgment, with a five-year outer limit from entry. Requires a meritorious defense but not a reasonable excuse. For background on the underlying claim, see the elements and evidence of a breach-of-contract claim.
Mistakes That Sink the Motion
Motions to vacate with strong substantive grounds get denied every term because of procedural execution that ignores what New York courts require. Two categories of failure recur in the denied orders that come out of Kings, New York, Queens, and Richmond County motion practice.
Use the correct court and index number, give the notice the court directs, and support the selected ground with admissible facts and relevant records. A proposed answer helps identify the defenses and may be required by the court’s practice or requested relief. Jurisdictional relief does not require a merits showing. Procedural omissions must be evaluated under the governing rules, not assumed universally fatal.
Presenting a bare denial as a meritorious defense. Offering generic law office failure with no specifics about staff, dates, or files. Ignoring the timing of when the default was discovered and why no motion was filed sooner. Failing to address the plaintiff's prima facie case on the underlying claim. Each gap gives the court a reason to deny without reaching the merits.
The papers should match the ground for relief. An excusable-default motion needs both an excuse and a potentially meritorious defense; a jurisdictional challenge needs specific proof of the defect. Include any proposed pleading or other papers required for the requested relief. Once reopened, the case still requires a substantive defense on the merits.
After the Motion
If the court grants relief, read the order for its scope: it may vacate the judgment and default, direct service of an answer by a stated date, or impose conditions. Counsel should arrange release of restraints based on the vacated judgment and communicate the order to the creditor and affected banks. Do not assume a proposed answer is deemed served or a bank account is released without the necessary order and follow-through. Filing a motion alone does not stay enforcement; request a stay when needed.
If the court denies the motion, the judgment stands and enforcement resumes or continues. The defendant may appeal the denial to the appropriate Appellate Division within thirty days of service of the order with notice of entry. In some cases, a renewed motion based on different grounds becomes available. A defendant whose excusable default motion was denied may still have a jurisdictional motion under CPLR 5015(a)(4), which carries no time bar and no discretion.
Vacating is not a win on the merits. It is permission to defend the underlying case. The plaintiff who lost the default will press the substantive claim with renewed force, and the defendant who fought to get back into the case must now actually defend it. The motion to vacate is the beginning of the defense, not the end. The full arc of defense work continues through Kleyman Law Group from the vacate motion to disposition of the underlying claim.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to vacate a default judgment in New York?
For excusable default under CPLR 5015(a)(1), one year ordinarily runs from service of the judgment with written notice of entry, or from entry if the moving party entered it. Jurisdictional relief is not subject to that one-year limit. CPLR 317 permits qualifying non-personally-served defendants to move within one year of learning of entry, never more than five years after entry. Act promptly.
What counts as a reasonable excuse for missing the deadline?
Documented illness, detailed law office failure with specific facts, a mailing or service mishap, settlement negotiations interrupted by default, or lack of actual notice where the business address was stale. Conclusory excuses that lack names, dates, or supporting documents are denied as a matter of routine in New York motion practice.
What is a meritorious defense?
A specific factual or legal basis that, if accepted, would defeat the plaintiff's claim. It has to be supported by sworn affidavits with detail and documents the court can read on the papers. Courts do not require proof the defendant will win at trial, only that the case is genuinely defensible on the merits.
Can I vacate a judgment older than one year?
Possibly. A judgment’s age alone does not decide the CPLR 5015(a)(1) notice-of-entry deadline. Other grounds, including jurisdictional defects, may remain available; motions based on newly discovered evidence or adverse-party fraud must be made within a reasonable time. CPLR 317 has a one-year knowledge deadline and a five-year outer limit. The record determines which route applies.
What happens if the court grants my motion to vacate?
The order determines what is vacated, whether conditions apply, and when an answer must be served. Restraints based on a vacated judgment should be released through the required notice and follow-through; this is not automatic merely because a motion was filed. Vacating restores the opportunity to defend, not a win on the underlying claim.
Need to Vacate a Default Judgment?
Kleyman Law Group files motions to vacate default judgments across Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, and Staten Island. Talk to a business litigation attorney about your case today.