A father must defend himself against his son's allegedly time-barred suit, lodged over a Monet painting worth millions, because he has failed to produce a medical affidavit showing he's unable to testify, a state judge has ruled.

Nicholas Zoullas, the father, appears to have a meritorious summary judgment claim based on the statute of limitations, but he must proceed to trial because his son, Sophocles Zoullas, “has been deprived of the opportunity to either conduct the deposition of the defendant or call the defendant as an adverse witness at trial,” according to Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Barry Ostrager.

NYLJ/Rick Kopstein

In a 10-page opinion, Ostrager added that “regardless of whether the conversion claim is time-barred as a matter of law, summary judgment is denied because there are potentially credibility issues relating to whether the defendant should be equitably estopped from asserting a statute of limitations claim.”