Orlando Vinton

The plaintiff and the defendant were in a common law relationship and owned a home as joint tenants.

After they separated, the defendant retained lawyers to sever the joint tenancy by transferring her interest to herself as a tenant-in-common.

The plaintiff brought multiple actions against the defendant and her lawyers, alleging conspiracy, deceit, and fraudulent conveyance.

The defendants moved for summary judgment.

The court granted summary judgment, dismissing the claims against the lawyers and the conspiracy/fraudulent conveyance claims against the defendant, finding no unlawful act, no agreement to injure, and no damages suffered by the plaintiff.

The plaintiff's cross-motions, including for criminal contempt and constitutional declarations, were also dismissed.

This endorsement addresses procedural complexities in a family law application.

The applicant mother sought determination of parenting, child support, spousal support, and property issues following a 14-year unmarried relationship.

The respondent father had initiated three civil actions related to property and had served an Answer in the family court application but failed to file it, preventing a Case Conference.

The father sought an adjournment, citing work commitments and a "jurisdictional" argument that the family claims should await resolution of the civil property actions.

The court dismissed the adjournment request, finding no logical connection between the civil property actions and the family law claims for support and parenting.

The defendants brought a motion to permit a former co-defendant, the plaintiff's ex-husband, to attend the plaintiff's examination for discovery as an agent for the remaining defendants.

The plaintiff brought a cross-motion to bar him from attending, arguing she was intimidated by him.

The court held that the former co-defendant had no inherent right to attend the examination.

However, exercising its discretion, the court granted him leave to observe the examination via closed-circuit video to assist the defendants' counsel, balancing the defendants' need for his factual knowledge with the plaintiff's concerns.