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Decided on November 22, 2004
District Court of Nassau County, First District

7450/04
Lisa Buttacavoli, pro se John P. Killard, pro se Alfred D. Cooper, J.
DECISION AFTER TRIAL
This is a plenary civil District Court action commended by Lisa Buttacavoli, hereinafter the plaintiff, against John P. Killard, hereinafter the defendant. This action commenced by way of endorsed summons and complaint is grounded on an allegation of breach of contract by the defendant. The plaintiff alleges in a two sentence statement, "Breach of contract [sic] defendant owes money for motorcycle loan and credit card bills. I transferred his credit card debt to my cards to lower the finance charges". The plaintiff seeks the sum of $8,000.00 in damages.
The defendant filed a one page pro forma answer. The defendant states in his answer, "I do not owe Lisa Buttacavoli this amount of money she claims. I was engaged to her and we shared everything together. We broke up she said I owed her money. I gave her A [sic] car, furniture, TV and money. I haven't heard from her in over 1yr 6 months now. She claiming I owe her $8,000.00. I don't owe her".
The Court conducted a bench trial of this matter on September 15, 2004. The Court makes the following findings of fact and conclusions of law.

FINDING OF FACT
The parties commenced to reside together in 1998. The defendant was invited to live with plaintiff at her parents' residence while she was still attending college. The defendant shared the plaintiff's bedroom with the consent of her parents. The defendant [*2]did not attend college during the relationship but, he was gainfully employed. Both parties testified at trial that it was their intent to share the expenses of their relationship, and in fact did so. Their cohabitation continued until March 04 2002, and the relationship until May of 2002 when they broke it off.
In June 1999, the plaintiff took out a personal loan from European American Bank (hereinafter E.A.B.) for the sum of $9,400.00. She gave the proceeds of the loan to the defendant along with an additional sum of $2,000.00 from her Discover Credit Card for a total of $11,400.00. The defendant used this latter sum to purchase a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. The plaintiff testified that the $11,400.00 given to the defendant was given as a loan. However, there was no documentation created to evidence the alleged loan or the terms of its re-payment. The plaintiff testified further, that the defendant was to pay the loan back at a rate of $214.00 per month. There was no documentation of the defendants' agreement to make said monthly payments.
The plaintiff testified, that the defendant, while they were residing at her parents' home, in her bedroom, transferred a 1991 Chevrolet automobile to her father so as to allow her to have access and to use the automobile while she was attending college. In April 2001, when they had moved out of her parents' home and had moved into their own apartment at 124 Cow Road, East Meadow, New York, she suggested to the defendant that he ought to transfer the balance due on his credit card to her credit card account so as to reduce the interest rate. The Court finds, the defendant and the plaintiff had taken a vacation to England in 1999, while the plaintiff was still attending college full time. The defendant incurred their charges for the vacation in England on his credit card. The Plaintiff testified, that she on her own, without any evidence of the defendant's consent or request, transferred, by telephone in April 2001, the balance of $5,100.00 from the defendant's credit card to her Citibank credit card account. The plaintiff also testified, that they were sharing the expenses of their household. Further, there was no evidence of the defendant's promise or agreement to pay the $5,100.00 which was transferred. As a matter of fact, the plaintiff testified that the defendant paid the rent of $725.00 per month for the both of them for two and one half years at the East Meadow apartment while she attended college. Furthermore, the Court finds that, only in the last year of the parties relationship did the plaintiff share in the payment of their monthly rent in East Meadow from December 2001 through February 2002.
During their relationship, both parties had access to all of their automobiles. They had purchased appliances jointly for their apartment, and the defendant paid for their furniture exclusively. There was no evidence of an expectation of re-payment of either party to the other for the expenditures of their cohabitation. The Court finds, the parties maintained a joint bank account, giving both parties access to each other's finances and earnings, although the plaintiff was a college student for two and a half years of their relationship.
The Court finds, the 1999 loan from E.A.B. by the plaintiff provided for a 60 months re

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