In an action to foreclose a mechanic’s lien, in which defendant Broadview Manor, Inc., the owner of the real property, interposed a counterclaim for $12,000, based on the alleged willful exaggeration by plaintiff of the amount of his lien, the plaintiff appeals from a judgment of the Supreme Court, Westchester County, rendered January 12, 1959, after trial, which inter alia dismissed the complaint on the merits and vacated the mechanic’s lien. Judgment reversed on the facts and new trial granted, with costs to plaintiff to abide the event. Trial was had on Monday, December 15, 1958, although the plaintiff’s attorney had withdrawn the preceding Friday. Plaintiff, a layman, endeavored to present his own case. He relied on a written agreement in which
