Appellate Division, First Department · October 15, 2026 · 2026 NY Slip Op 06037
Wilmington Savings Fund Society, etc., Plaintiff-Appellant, v David Lopez, Jr., etc., et al., Defendants-Respondents.
Read the official decision: 2026 NY Slip Op 06037
Holding A property owner who is not the original borrower lacks standing to raise defenses based on the lender’s failure to comply with RPAPL 1304 or contractual pre-foreclosure notice requirements. Such defenses are personal to the original borrower and cannot be asserted by a transferee or heir who is a stranger to the note and mortgage.
The court’s words
Noncompliance with RPAPL 1304 . . . in a mortgage agreement [is a] personal defense[] that may not be raised by parties who are strangers to the subject note and mortgage
2026 NY Slip Op 06037, at the official text
he is no different from any other transferee of property subject to a mortgage, and thus he is a stranger to the note and mortgage instruments
2026 NY Slip Op 06037, at the official text
| Court | Appellate Division, First Department |
|---|---|
| Decided | October 15, 2026 |
| Citation | 2026 NY Slip Op 06037 |
| Area of law | Mortgage Foreclosure · Real Property |
| Week | Week ending October 17, 2026 |
| Official text | Official decision: 2026 NY Slip Op 06037 |
| Publication status | Slip opinions are uncorrected and subject to revision before publication in the Official Reports. |
| Source feed | New York slip opinion page |
| Law Watch record id | 1296 |
Recommended citation
ESQ HQ, New York Law Watch, Wilmington Savings Fund Society, etc., Plaintiff-Appellant, v David Lopez, Jr., etc., et al., Defendants-Respondents., 2026 NY Slip Op 06037 (Appellate Division, First Department, October 15, 2026), https://esqhq.com/decisions/2026-ny-slip-op-06037/
How this record was made
Holding drafted by Law Watch’s in-house model, graded by three reviewers; every quotation verified word for word against the official text.
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