Judiciary Law 487 is the lawyer deceit common law, imported from the Magna Carta era.  It is the oldest Anglo-American common law, and has recently been the subject of several NYS Court of Appeals rulings.  In Kuruwa v 130E. 18 Owners Corp. 2014 NYSlipOp 06880 [121 AD3d 472]
October 9, 2014 Appellate Division, First Department the Court held that mere false answers to an information subpoena and legal arguments could not support a JL 487 claim.

“The IAS court correctly found that respondent bank’s perfected, secured interest in the subject property has priority over petitioners’ unsecured money judgment (see Chrysler Credit Corp. v Simchuk, 258 AD2d 349 [1st Dept 1999]). The bank’s false answers to the information subpoena, in which it denied having a mortgage on the Meyers respondents’ apartment, did not prejudice petitioners; nor do they point to any detrimental reliance upon the statements (cf. Leber-Krebs, Inc. v Capitol Records, 779 F2d 895, 896 [2d Cir 1985]).

The court also correctly held that there could be no judicial sale of the cooperative apartment. The Meyers defendants had purchased the co-op before they were married, and they concede that they originally owned it as tenants in common (see EPTL 6-2.2). They refinanced the purchase money mortgage after they were married, and the bank required a name change on a newly issued stock certificate and proprietary lease. The change in title, made by the cooperative corporation, after the parties were married effectively changed ownership from tenants in common to tenants by the entirety.

[*2] The legal arguments made by the bank’s counsel and the Meyerses’ counsel do not give rise to claims under Judiciary Law § 487.”