Overlay values over default values in a JSON object

OverlayJSON.cs

private static object ApplyDefaultData(object data, object defaultData)
{
  if (defaultData != null)
  {
    var target = new ExpandoObject();
    
    // I apply the default values
    string defaultJson = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(defaultData, _jsonSerializerSettings);
    JsonConvert.PopulateObject(defaultJson, target, _jsonSerializerSettings);
    
    if (data != null)
    {
      // Then I allow any data to override the defaults
      string valueJson = JsonConvert.SerializeObject(data, _jsonSerializerSettings);
      JsonConvert.PopulateObject(valueJson, target, _jsonSerializerSettings);
    }
    
    return target;
  }
  else
  {
    return data;
  }
}