PHH Mortgage Corporation v. Aulet
- John Cronan
- 1:25-cv-07709
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In PHH Mortgage v. Aulet, Judge Cronan ordered PHH to seek default judgment or explain its delay, and scheduled a January 20, 2026 hearing.
PHH Mortgage Corporation and the defendants, including Alyson Aulet, the New York City Parking Violations Bureau, the New York City Environmental Control Board, the New York City Transit Adjudication Bureau, and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.
What happened
In PHH Mortgage Corporation v. Alyson Aulet, et al., PHH Mortgage said it served the defendants, but none appeared by the extended deadline. The court clerk issued certificates stating that the defendants had not responded.
The court ordered PHH Mortgage to file a motion for default judgment by December 19, 2025, or explain why the case should not be dismissed for failure to prosecute. The court also required PHH Mortgage to explain in its filings why the complaint supports each claim and why service on each defendant was proper.
Judge Cronan scheduled a telephone hearing for January 20, 2026, for the defendants to explain why default judgment should not be entered. The order did not grant default judgment.
The detailed version
- PHH Mortgage Corporation v. Aulet · No. 1:25-cv-07709
- John Cronan
- Dec. 3, 2025
Background
PHH Mortgage Corporation filed the complaint on September 17,
- The opinion states that Alyson Aulet and the other named defendants were served on different dates, and that their deadlines to respond were in October
- After none of the defendants appeared, the court extended their deadlines to November 25,
- PHH Mortgage then requested certificates of default, which the clerk issued on December 2, 2025.
Order
The court ordered PHH Mortgage, by December 19, 2025, to move for default judgment against the defendants under the applicable court rules or show why the case should not be dismissed for failure to prosecute. A default judgment is a judgment requested because a defendant did not appear or respond; it was not entered by this order.
The court required PHH Mortgage to serve the motion and supporting materials on the defendants by December 19, 2025, file proof of service by December 23, 2025, and follow the stated schedule for any opposition and reply. The defendants' opposition was due January 6, 2026, and PHH Mortgage's reply was due January 13, 2026.
Issues the Motion Must Address
The court stated that, if PHH Mortgage seeks default judgment, it must explain why the complaint establishes liability for each cause of action, including how the well-pleaded allegations satisfy each required element. The court also required PHH Mortgage to explain why service on each defendant was proper. The court warned that failure to provide either explanation could result in denial of default judgment as to a claim.
Hearing and Additional Service
The court ordered the defendants to appear and show cause at a telephone hearing on January 20, 2026, at 2:00 p.m., explaining why default judgment should not be entered. If the defendants did not appear, PHH Mortgage's counsel was directed to be prepared to discuss communications with the defendants, service and notice, and the method for calculating damages. If defendants appeared and opposed the motion before the hearing, the hearing would also serve as the initial case-management conference.
PHH Mortgage was separately ordered to serve the defendants with a copy of the order by overnight courier within one week and file proof of that service within two business days. Judge John P. Cronan did not enter default judgment in this order.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.