Friar v. Wyndham Vacation Resorts, Inc.

Background

Isiam Ray Friar sued Wyndham Vacation Resorts, Inc., Derrick Taylor, and Maria Maese, asserting state-law claims of fraud and recession. Wyndham filed a breach-of-contract counterclaim against Friar and moved for default judgment.

Friar purchased a timeshare from Wyndham in 2014 under two contracts. Contract 1401168 provided 250,000 annual points and required monthly payments of $579.50. Contract 1402430 provided 750,000 annual points and required monthly payments of $581.39. Friar stopped making payments in February 2017. At that time, he allegedly owed $29,227.24 on Contract 1401168 and $29,200.09 on Contract 1402430.

Wyndham filed its counterclaim and served Friar on April 9, 2021. After Friar failed to plead or otherwise defend, the Clerk issued a certificate of default, and Wyndham moved for default judgment.

Court’s Analysis

The court held that it had subject-matter jurisdiction based on complete diversity. It also determined that Wyndham’s breach-of-contract counterclaim was compulsory because it arose from the same transaction as Friar’s claims.

For a default judgment, the court accepts the well-pleaded factual allegations of the non-defaulting party as true but must still determine whether those allegations establish liability as a matter of law. The court concluded that Wyndham’s well-pleaded counterclaim established Friar’s liability and that Wyndham was entitled to the requested relief.

Ruling

The court granted Wyndham’s motion for default judgment. It awarded Wyndham judgment against Friar in the amount of $29,227.24 for Contract 1401168, plus prejudgment interest at New York’s statutory rate of nine percent from April 25, 2019, through March 28, 2022. It awarded Wyndham $29,200.09 for Contract 1402430, plus nine-percent prejudgment interest from April 30, 2019, through March 28, 2022.

The court also dismissed Friar’s claims against the defendants for failure to prosecute. It directed the Clerk to enter judgment accordingly, close the motion, and close the case. Wyndham was directed to mail Friar a copy of the order within seven days.