Bozzuto Management Co. v. Craig

── Bozzuto Management Co. v. Craig ── Court: District of Columbia Court of Appeals Date: April 30, 2026 Category: General Notice: This opinion is subject to formal revision before publication in the Atlantic and Maryland Reporters. Users are requested to notify the Clerk of the Court of any formal errors so that corrections may be made before the bound volumes go to press. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COURT OF APPEALS No. 24-CV-1022 BOZZUTO MANAGEMENT COMPANY, et al., APPELLANTS, v. KELLY CRAIG, APPELLEE. Appeal from the Superior Court of the District of Columbia (2024-CAB-005915) (Hon. Maurice A. Ross, Motions Judge) (Submitted February 18, 2026 Decided April 30, 2026) James D. Bragdon and Christina F. Araviakis were on the brief for appellants. Cathy A. Braxton was on the brief for appellee. Before MCLEESE, DEAHL and HOWARD, Associate Judges. HOWARD, Associate Judge: Appellants challenge what they describe as the appellee’s collateral attack in the Superior Court Civil Division on a default judgment entered against the appellee in an eviction action in the Landlord and Tenant Branch of the Superior Court. Appellants argue that the appellee’s attack was improper under our application of Superior Court Rules of Civil Procedure Rule  2 60 in Threatt v. Winston, 907 A.2d 780, 787 (D.C. 2006), and that the Civil Division’s order granting preliminary injunctive relief from the default judgment should be vacated. We disagree. In limited circumstances such as these, where a litigant first attacked a default judgment in the court that issued it, we hold that a subsequent motion in a collateral court for temporary relief to avoid irreparable harm while the issuing court considers the merits of the attack against its judgment does not contravene Rule 60 and is not improper. We affirm the preliminary injunction granted by the Superior Court Civil Division. I. Background This appeal arises from an eviction proceeding conducted in the Landlord and Tenant Branch (L&T) of the Superior Court. Appellants, Bozzuto Management Company and John Hancock Life Insurance Company, respectively manage and own the apartment leased by the appellee, Ms. Kelly Craig. Ms. Craig, who uses a wheelchair, had lived in the apartment since she was released from nursing home care after she suffered a stroke in 2018. Ms. Craig’s rent was fully paid by a D.C. housing voucher; she had the responsibility of paying for utilities, parking, and other personal expenses. Appellants initiated an action for repossession of Ms. Craig’s apartment in the L&T court in early May 2024, after Ms. Craig failed to fulfill her obligation to pay  3 parking fees and utilities.1 When the time came, Ms. Craig did not attend the initial hearing on July 25, 2024. Appellants represented to the L&T court that they had served Ms. Craig a copy of the complaint and summons by proxy, through her brother, Brian Craig; however, a declaration of service later showed that Appellants erroneously stated they had served Ms. Craig but provided a description of her brother instead. Despite the mix-up, the L&T court found that Ms. Craig had been properly served and entered default judgment against her. 2 Appellants then secured a writ of restitution against Ms. Craig, and she was evicted as scheduled by the U.S. Marshals Service on September 10, 2024. That same day, Ms. Craig filed an Emergency Motion to Vacate Default Judgment for Possession Due to Lack of Personal Jurisdiction and Insufficient Service of Process alongside a Motion for a Temporary Restraining Order and Preliminary Injunction with the L&T court. The record does not indicate what happened over the nex