The period of publication of a legal notice shall be computed by excluding the first day of publication and including the day on which the act or event of which notice is given is to take place or which completes the full period of publication.
§ 2402.Computation of time for publication of notice
Article 24. Publication · Last amended 1963 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 2402 fixes the counting method for a legal notice's publication period, excluding the first day it runs and including the day of the event the notice announces or the day that completes the required span.
Full Text of CPLR 2402
Plain-English Summary
When a statute or court order requires notice to run for a set period — say, four weeks — someone has to decide whether that period starts counting the day the first notice appears or the day after. CPLR 2402 answers that question: exclude the first day of publication, and include the day of the act or event the notice announces, or the day that completes the full publication period.
The rule matters most at the edges of a deadline. A party who counts the first publication day as day one, instead of excluding it, can end up filing proof of a shorter period than the law requires, undercutting the notice's validity.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you count the publication period for a legal notice in New York?
CPLR 2402 excludes the first day the notice is published and includes the day of the event the notice announces, or the day that completes the required publication period.
Does the day of first publication count toward the notice period?
No. CPLR 2402 specifically excludes the first day of publication from the count.
What day does count as the last day of a publication period?
The day of the act or event the notice announces, or the day the full publication period is completed, counts under CPLR 2402.
Why does the counting method for publication notices matter?
Getting the count wrong can shorten the actual publication period below what a statute, rule, or order requires, which can undercut the validity of the notice.
Does CPLR 2402 apply to any published legal notice?
It applies to the period of publication of a legal notice generally, wherever a statute, rule, or court order requires notice by publication.
Advisory Committee Notes
This section is the same as CPA § 144, with omission of the explicit references to actions, special proceedings, courts of record or not of record, and proceedings before a judge, since these references are not necessary under the new CPLR. See §§ 101, 103(b). Former CPA § 144 derived practically unchanged from § 787 of the Throop Code and § 425 of the Field Code. Its retention was required despite the general computation of time provision in § 20 of the General Construction Law because the latter would not cover ascertainment of the final day of the period of publication.
Amendment History
Add, L 1962, ch 308, § 1, eff Sept 1, 1963.
Source & verification. Provision text, History, and Advisory
Committee Notes are reproduced verbatim from the Consolidated Laws of New York.
Last verified July 21, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: computation of publication period New Yorkhow to count legal notice publication dayslegal notice deadline calculation New York