Following a settlement of a mortgage action resulting in a consent judgment, the defendants sought a mortgage payout statement to discharge the mortgage and obtain new financing.
The plaintiff provided a payout statement that included additional legal fees and costs incurred prior to judgment, as well as a holdback amount.
The defendants objected to these additional amounts, arguing that all legal costs and fees incurred prior to judgment were addressed and adjudicated in the consent judgment.
The court found that the consent judgment included all legal costs incurred up to the date of settlement and that the plaintiff was not entitled to claim additional pre-judgment legal costs or a holdback amount as a precondition to discharge.
