Ordered that the appeal from so much of the order as denied that branch of the appellants’ motion which was for leave to reargue is dismissed, as no appeal lies from an order denying re-argument; and it is further,
Ordered that the judgment is modified, on the law, by deleting the provision thereof awarding the plaintiffs or their attorneys an attorneys’ fee in the sum of $20,000; as so modified, the judgment is affirmed, without costs or disbursements, and the matter is remitted to the Supreme Court, Queens County, for a hearing on the issue of an attorneys’ fee; and it is further,
Ordered that the order is affirmed insofar as reviewed, without costs or disbursements.
On their prior motion for summary judgment, the plaintiffs claimed that the taxes owed were $84,402.37. In opposition to that motion, the appellants acknowledged that the $84,402.37 figure included taxes claimed to be owed and “accrued interest.” The appellants asserted that there were issues of fact as to “the computation of the amount of the purported [tax] lien” and challenged the amount of the assessments as arbitrary.
By order dated June 25, 2001, the Supreme Court granted the plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment and struck the appellants’ answer “in its entirety” and stated that “the affirmative defenses and counterclaim are dismissed.” This Court affirmed that determination noting that the appellants “argued that the taxes had been improperly assessed . . . even though there had been settlements reducing the assessments for the tax years 1990/1991, 1991/1992, 1992/1993, 1993/1994, and 1994/1995 . . . but the statutory limitations period for challenging the tax assessments has long passed” (NYCTL 1996-1 Trust v Westmoreland Assoc., 2 AD3d 811, 812 [2003]).
In a memorandum decision dated March 28, 2005, the Supreme Court stated that the motion to confirm the referee’s report should be granted and directed the plaintiffs to submit an affidavit of legal services rendered along with a proposed judgment for settlement. After the plaintiffs submitted copies of bills for an attorneys’ fee and an affidavit setting forth the number of hours spent, the Supreme Court entered judgment confirming the referee’s report and awarding an attorneys’ fee of $20,000 without a hearing.
Thereafter, the appellants moved for leave to renew and reargue, raising a new issue that after reducing the assessments and the amount of taxes owed, the City persisted in charging interest on the original amount of taxes and included that excess interest in the $84,402.37. The Supreme Court denied the motion.
The Supreme Court had the power to accept or reject the referee’s findings with respect to the amount of the tax lien and to make new findings (see CPLR 4403; Adelman v Fremd, 234 AD2d 488, 489 [1996]; Stein v American Mtge. Banking, 216 AD2d 458 [1995]). There was no need for a hearing since the referee’s arithmetic calculation of the 5% surcharge and interest owed from May 21, 1996, until January 10, 2003, was based upon the amount of property taxes owed—$84,402.37—which was previously litigated upon the determination of the plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment and affirmance thereof by this Court (see NYCTL 1996-1 Trust v Westmoreland Assoc., supra).
In opposition to the plaintiffs’ motion to confirm the referee’s findings, the appellants revisited arguments previously rejected by the Supreme Court and this Court on the prior appeal from the order granting the plaintiffs summary judgment. In view of
We dismiss the appeal from so much of the order entered August 22, 2005, as denied reargument on the ground that no appeal lies from an order denying reargument. So much of the order as denied that branch of the appellants’ motion which was for renewal is affirmed on the ground that the appellants on renewal asserted no new facts or arguments which were not offered in their original papers in opposition to the motion to confirm the referee’s report (see CPLR 2221; O’Connell v Post, 27 AD3d 631 [2006]).
The appellants’ remaining contentions are unpreserved for appellate review. Florio, J.E, Goldstein, Luciano and Lunn, JJ., concur.
