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FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 10/25/2023 04:42 PM INDEX NO. 618297/2023
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 8 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 10/25/2023
"A"
EXHIBIT
FILED: SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 10/25/2023 04:42 PM INDEX NO. 618297/2023
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FILED SUFFOLK COUNTY CLERK 07/26/2023 INDEX NO. 618297 /2023
: 04:52 PM)
NYSCEF DOC. NO. 1 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 07/26/2023
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK Index No.:
COUNTY OF SUFFOLK Dated: July __, 2023
-----------------------------------------------X Plaintiff designates
THOMAS O'DONOGHUE, SUFFOLK County
as the place of trial
Plaintiff, The basis of the venue is
based upon Plaintiff's
-against- residence/place of occurrence.
SUMMONS WITH
NOTICE / JURY DEMAND
TRICIA O'DONOGHUE,
Defendant's address:
Defendants.
______________ _______ ___ ___ _____________Ç
ACTION FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT, FRAUD IN THE INDUCEMENT, FRAUD IN THE
PERFORMANCE, BREACH OF THE COVENANT OF GOOD FAITH AND FAIR DEALING,
RESCISSION, REFORMATION, FAILURE/WANT OF CONSIDERATION, DECLARATORY
JUDGMENT, TORTIOUS INTERFERENCE WITH CONTRACTUAL RIGHTS, BREACH OF
FIDUCIARY DUTY, and UNJUST ENRICHMENT.
To the Above-Named Defendants:
Plaintiffs'
YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to serve a Notice of Appearance on the Attorney
within 20 days after the service of this summons, exclusive of the day of service (or within 30 days after
the service is complete if this summons is not personally delivered to you within the State ofNew York)
and in case of your failure to appear, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief requested
in the notice set forth below. Demand for a jury trial is hereby made.
Dated: Hauppauge, New York
July 26, 2023 Law Offices of
Rah-out . bel C .
ROBERT J. LCOL
Attorney for Plaintiffs
550 Route 111,
Hauppauge, NY 11788
(631) 271-4684
NOTICE: The nature of this action is to recover for monetary damages and declaratory judgment
all relating to a certain written marital agreement dated September 28, 2018 to the present.
The relief sought is a recovery of attorney's fees, compensatory damages and punitive
damages in an amount to be determined by a jury but in no event less than $5,000,000.00 (Five Million
Dollars).
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SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
COUNTY OF SUFFOLK
____________________.._______Ç
THOMAS O'DONOGHUE,
Plaintiff, Index No.: 618297/2023
-against- VERIFIED COMPLAINT
TRICIA O'DONOGHUE,
Defendant.
____________________________Ç
The Plaintiff, THOMAS O'DONOGHUE, through his attorney, the Law Office of Robert
J. Del Col, Esq., hereby complains, alleges and contends the following.
General Statement of the Case
First: This action arises out of a marital agreement dated September 28, 2018, which
purportedly settled a contested matrimonial action pending in the Supreme Court held in and for
the County of Suffolk. The agreement in question obligated the Defendant to pay all "carrying
charges"
associated with the former marital residence located at 6 Steven Path, Center Moriches.
In exchange for Defendant's promise to pay all costs associated with the residence, including
those related to an outstanding mortgage (principal interest and real property taxes), the Plaintiff
transferred all his right, title, interest and equitable share in the residence to Defendant. Since the
transfer of the title in 2018, Plaintiff was led to believe that Defendant was, aside from making
regular payments, attempting to re-finance the mortgage, which was deep in arrears only to
belatedly learn that as opposed to refinancing the property in her own name, the Defendant
forged loan documents seeking to make Plaintiff responsible for an enormous debt which, in
turn, violated a specific provision that prohibited either party from incurring debt in the name of
the other. Moreover, for the approximate 60 months Defendant has been in title, she never made
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a single payment allowing an additional $500,000.00 of arrears, penalties, taxes, and default
interest to accrue in Plaintiff's name.
Second: By this Complaint, Plaintiff alleges not only that Defendant breached the
terms of the marital agreement by forging Plaintiff's name to loan documents, an act of forgery
that she was ultimately arrested and charged with a felony for violating PL §170.25, but further,
that allowing $500,000.00 in mortgage, principal, interest, and real property taxes to continue to
accrue since the transfer of title, likewise constitutes a stand-alone breach of the agreement that
has damaged Plaintiff.
Third: By this Complaint, Plaintiff alleges that because Defendant took title to the
property and was obligated to pay all carrying charge, including those mortgage arrears that
existed at the time she took title, she has damaged Plaintiff in an amount equal to an outstanding
mortgage principal, interest, real property taxes, late fees, penalties, and legal expenses related to
the mortgage, who remains obligated for approximately $1,000,000.00 in total mortgage arrears,
late fees, property taxes, and legal expenses.
Fourth:By this Complaint, Plaintiff also alleges that given the uncertainty regarding the
future consequences of Defendant's nefarious actions, Defendant should be declared financially
obligated and as a de facto and de jure indemnitor for any liabilities imposed upon Plaintiff.
The Parties
Fifth: Plaintiff repeats and reasserts each and every previous paragraph as if fully set
forth herein.
Sixth: The Plaintiff, Thomas O'Donoghue, is a resident of New York State, County of
Suffolk, Town of Manorville, Mr. O'Donoghue, relying on the mutual promises and the implied
covenant of good faith and fair dealing, was a party to a marital agreement that called for Mr.
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O'Donoghue to trade his equitable interest, including any value attributable to real property in
the premises commonly referred to as 6 Steven Path, Center Moriches, and did so in exchange
Defendants'
for promise to immediately become responsible for all costs associated with the
marital residence.
Seventh: The Defendant, Tricia O'Donoghue, is a resident of Suffolk County, State
of New York, and resides in the Town of Center Moriches, specifically 6 Steven Path. On
September 28, 2018, Defendant, obviously with no intention of fulfilling the obligations or
promises reflected in the contract dated September 28, 2018, fraudulently induced Plaintiff into
making the agreement.
The Contract at the Center of This Dispute
Eighth:On September 28, 2018, the parties to this action made an agreement that was
reduced to writing and properly acknowledged. Amongst the traditional provisions that
accompany similar agreements is a provision stating "the Wife (Defendant) shall be solely
residence."
responsible for the carrying charges, utilities, and maintenance regarding said
Thereafter, the agreement specifically acknowledges that there is an existing mortgage in
Plaintiff's name alone and that the mortgage is past due and no payment has been made for "10
years."
Thereafter, the contract provides that "the Husband agrees to waive all right, title and
premises"
interest he may have in the and to execute any documents necessary to transfer title to
the Defendant. Finally, the same provision in the agreement states the Plaintiff shall execute a
bargain and sale deed "simultaneously with the execution of this stipulation relinquishing all his
(Defendant)."
right and title to the marital residence to the Wife In or around the time the
agreement was made, Plaintiff, in accordance with the agreement, deeded the home over to
Defendant.
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Ninth: In a subsequent paragraph, the parties warranted and covenanted that "each will
not hereafter incur or contract any debt, charge, obligation, or liability whatsoever for which the
liable."
other or his legal representation or his estate may become The agreement continues,
"the parties hereto indemnify and hold each other harmless for any and all damages sustained as
expenses."
a result of a party's breach...including reasonable counsel fees and litigation
Tenth: Finally, there is a free-standing provision appearing in the agreement that again
has the parties covenanting and representing that neither party "has not and will not hereafter
incur any debt or liability for which the other may become liable and each party agrees to
indemmfy and hold the other party harmless from any debt or liability for which he or she is
responsible."
Defendant's Conduct
Eleventh: Beginning sometime after assuming the obligation to be "solely
charges,"
responsible for all carrying in exchange for ownership of the former marital residence,
Defendant commenced with a pattern of forging Mr. O'Donoghue's name to various loan
documents in an attempt to financially obligate him to a mortgage restructure and did so without
Plaintiff's knowledge or consent. It is further alleged that Defendant's practice of forging
Plaintiff's name commenced after the judgment of divorce was entered and further, that aside
from mortgage-related documents, there may be other instances where Defendant sought an
extension of credit in Plaintiff's name without his knowledge or consent.
Twelfth: In September of 2023, after reviewing the facts and circumstances
detectives, in tandem with members of the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office, concluded
there was probable cause that a crime was committed and it was Ms. O'Donoghue who
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committed it and arrested the Defendant for a felony-grade forgery directly relating to the
mortgage restructure documents.
Thirteenth: By this Complaint, Plaintiff alleges that as opposed to paying the carrying
charges as clearly provided for in the agreement, Defendant intentionally, willfully, intentionally,
and deliberately refused to do so, permitting in excess of $500,000.00 in mortgage principal,
interest, and late fees to accrue in Mr. O'Donoghue's name in violation of the express terms of
an unambiguous written agreement.
As and For a First Cause of Action
(Breach of Contract)
Fourteenth: Plaintiff repeats and reasserts each and every previous paragraph as if
fully set forth herein.
Fifteenth: In New York, in order to maintain an·action for breach of contract, a party
must allege that the Plaintiff and Defendant made a valid contract, that the contract was breached
the Defendant, the Plaintiff performed and as a result of Defendant's breach, Plaintiff suffered
by
damages. It is alleged that insofar as Defendant's obligation to pay all monthly principal,
interest, and real estate taxes, once Mr. O'Donoghue transferred title the dependent covenant was
fulfilled and Defendant's obligation was reciprocally fixed.
Sixteenth: On September 28, 2018, the parties, each represented by counsel, made
and entered a valid, written, property-subscribed agreement that, in exchange for Plaintiff's
"solely"
interest in the marital residence, Defendant would become responsible for "all carrying
charges"
which, in the ordinary course and plain meaning, includes all principal, interest, and
real property taxes.
Seventeenth: Plaintiff asserts that the provision appearing in the agreement that required
Plaintiff to deed the home to Defendant, obligating Defendant to pay the carrying charges, is a
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dependent covenant clause. Accordingly, once Plaintiff actually transferred all of his right, title,
and interest in the premises to Defendant, her obligations became fixed and there is no defense
for her actions.
Eighteenth: Plaintiff dutifully performed and, on or about the very day the agreement
was made, deeded the property over to the Defendant.
Nineteenth: The Defendant, on the other hand, has not made a single payment on the
mortgage and note, which remains in Plaintiffs name alone.
Twentieth: It is alleged by this Complaint that as a result of Defendant's failure to pay
as she agreed to do, Plaintiff has been damaged to the extent that he now has approximately
$1,000,000.00 in debt that, by virtue of the contract, he should not have to pay.
As and For a Second Cause of Action
(Breach of the Implied Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing)
Twenty-First: Plaintiff repeats and reasserts each and every previous paragraph as if
fully set forth herein.
Twenty-Second: In New York, all contracts have an implied covenant of good faith
and fair dealing in the course of perfonnance. In order to maintain an action for a breach of the
implied covenant independent from a breach itself, there must be a valid and enforceable
contract and the offending party must be alleged to have conducted themselves in a manner that
interferes with or extinguishes the objectives of the contract.
Twenty-Third:By this Complaint, Plaintiff asserts that by forging his name to loan
documents in an attempt to bind him to a mortgage restructure, constitutes a breach of the
implied duties Defendant owed to Plaintiff.
Twenty-Fourth: Plaintiff also alleges that when Defendant executed this contract,
she had a premeditated plot to manipulate the lending institution, by criminal acts of forgery, into
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obligating an unsuspecting Plaintiff with a restructured mortgage debt without Plaintiff's
knowledge or consent. Similarly, by this Complaint Plaintiff alleges that the Defendant never
intended to make any payments whatsoever toward monthly principal and interest payments, nor
did she act in good faith when luring Plaintiff into signing away a very valuable asset in
exchange for a promise to pay the associated carrying charges. It is alleged that Defendant never
intended to faithfully perform as she promised and instead, hatched a diabolical plot that would
provide a free luxurious home to live in and, in the end, leave Plaintiff hundreds of thousands of
dollars in debt.
As and For a Third Cause of Action
(Declaratory Judgment/Indemnification)
Twenty-Fifth: Plaintiff repeats and reasserts each and every previous paragraph as if
fully set forth herein.
Twenty-Sixth: By this Complaint, the Plaintiff seeks a declaratory judgment imposing the
consequential relief of indemnification.
Twenty-Seventh: Thus far, Plaintiff's damages are unknown and, as a consequence,
the remedy of indemnification will be the only equitable result inasmuch as Defendant's criminal
conduct and breach will result in a situation where no contractual remedy is available.
Twenty-Eighth: Plaintiff alleges that because it was never contemplated by anyone
other than the Defendant herself when the agreement was created that: (i) the mortgage would
remain unpaid, (ii) a forgery would be attempted, or (iii) that the mortgage obligation would
escalate while in Plaintiff's name alone, a half-million dollars, so no remedy rectifying such
egregious misconduct was crafted.
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Twenty-Ninth:Accordingly, the remedy of declaratory judgment indemnifying Plaintiff
against any mortgage-related debt and holding Defendant individually responsible to the bank
and alleviating Plaintiff from any obligation is an authorized and appropriate course of action.
Thirtieth: By this course of action, Plaintiff requests an order naming Defendant
individually responsible for all debt, costs, and expenses related to the premises that will be held
against Plaintiff as an unforeseen consequence of Defendant's misconduct.
Thirty-First: As part of the damages suffered by Plaintiff at the hands of Defendant are
those predicted but not yet materialized such as the destruction of Plaintiff's credit and
miscellaneous costs that naturally flow from being: (i) the victim of a crime; and (ii)