Defendant provided no response to interrogatories within 30 days after being served and when we appeared for the hearing Judge gave defendant 30 days to provide. No explanation was given to plaintiff. Attorneys and Judge discussed in private without plaintiff present.

Default should only be ordered as a last resort. Ordering a discovery response by a given date is a reasonable way to enforce discovery. So no, your attorney was not wrong.

What bothers me is the judge meeting with the attorneys out of the presence of the parties. While not illegal, it appears to be an ill-advised decision by the judge. You should ask your attorney exactly what was said in this meeting. You do have the right to know.