3216

Goetz v Public Serv. Truck Renting, Inc., 2018 NY Slip Op 04534 [2d Dept 2018]

"A court may not dismiss an action based on neglect to prosecute unless the statutory preconditions to dismissal, as articulated in CPLR 3216, are met" (Patel v MBG Dev., Inc., 41 AD3d 682, 682; see Baczkowski v Collins Constr. Co.,89 NY2d 499, 503). "Effective January 1, 2015, the Legislature amended, in several significant respects, the statutory preconditions to dismissal under CPLR 3216" (Rhodehouse v CVS Pharm., Inc., 151 AD3d 771, 772-773). One such precondition is that where a written demand to resume prosecution of the action is made by the court, as here, "the demand shall set forth the specific conduct constituting the neglect, which conduct shall demonstrate a general pattern of delay in proceeding with the litigation" (CPLR 3216[b][3]). Here, the compliance conference order did not set forth any specific conduct constituting neglect by the plaintiff. Accordingly, since one of the statutory preconditions to dismissal was not met, the court should not have directed dismissal of the complaint pursuant to CPLR 3216 (see Rhodehouse v CVS Pharm., Inc., 151 AD3d at 772-773).