(a) Stay of proceedings. An order to stay proceedings for the purpose of moving for removal may be made by the court in which the action is pending or the court to which removal is sought.
R 326.Procedure on removal.
Article 3. Jurisdiction and Service, Appearance and Choice of Court · Last amended 1964 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 326 covers the mechanics of removing an action to a different New York court, including staying proceedings pending the motion, transferring the case file, keeping prior proceedings valid, and crediting fees already paid.
Full Text of CPLR 326
(b) Order and subsequent proceedings. Where an order of removal is made by a court other than the court in which the action is pending, a certified copy of the order shall be filed with the clerk of the court in which the action is pending. Upon such filing or upon entry of an order of removal by him, the clerk of the court in which an action is pending shall forthwith deliver to the clerk of the court to which it has been ordered removed all papers and records in the action and certified copies of all minutes and entries which shall be filed, entered or recorded, as the case requires, in the office of the latter clerk. Subsequent proceedings shall be had in the court to which it has been ordered removed as if the action had been originally commenced there and no process, provisional remedy or other proceeding taken in the court from which the action was removed shall be invalid as the result of the removal.
(c) Fees and disbursements. If at the time the order of removal is entered any filing, trial or jury demand fees have been paid, such fees shall be credited against the fees which, for the same purpose, shall be required in the court to which the action has been ordered removed. A party entitled to tax disbursements after the removal may include fees paid by him prior to the time the order of removal is entered.
Plain-English Summary
Where section 325 sets out the grounds for removing a case to a different court, CPLR 326 handles what happens next. Either the court where the case is pending or the court removal is sought in may stay proceedings so the removal motion can be resolved without the case racing ahead in the meantime.
Once an order of removal issues from a different court than the one where the case is pending, a certified copy of that order goes to the clerk of the court where the action is pending. That clerk then forwards every paper and record in the case, along with certified copies of minutes and entries, to the clerk of the receiving court. From that point, the case proceeds in the new court as though it had started there, and nothing done before the removal -- no process, provisional remedy, or other step -- is undone by the transfer.
The section also settles who pays what in fees. Filing, trial, or jury demand fees already paid before the removal order is entered get credited against whatever the same type of fee costs in the receiving court, so a party doesn't pay twice for the same step.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a court pause a case while a removal motion is pending?
Yes. Either the court where the action is pending or the court removal is sought in may stay the proceedings for that purpose.
What happens to the case file when an action is removed?
The clerk of the original court forwards all papers, records, and certified copies of minutes and entries to the clerk of the court the case is removed to.
Does removal undo anything that already happened in the case?
No. Process, provisional remedies, and other proceedings taken before the removal remain valid.
Do I have to pay filing fees again after my case is removed?
No. Fees already paid, such as filing or jury demand fees, are credited against what's owed for the same purpose in the new court.
Does removal to a new court change how the case proceeds going forward?
No. Once removed, the case proceeds in the new court exactly as if it had been commenced there in the first place.
Advisory Committee Notes
(See also Advisory Committee notes preceding § 301, under subheading “Removal, transfer and consolidation of cases.”).
Subd (a) is derived from CPA § 168 and the last sentence of § 190. Although the former provisions cover only removal to the Supreme Court and to the Surrogate’s Court of the counties specified in CPA § 190-a, the new provision extends the principle to all types of removal.
Subd (b) combines several scattered provisions which the committee felt should apply to all types of removal under new CPLR §§ 325 and 602(b). The first two sentences, concerning the filing of the order and transfer of papers, are derived from parts of CPA §§ 110-a(3) and 110-b(2). The requirement that the removal order be filed with the clerk of the court in which the action is pending if it was made by another court, implicit in CPA § 110-a(3), is expressly stated in the first sentence. None of the other general removal provisions cover the matters of filing and transfer of papers. Service of copies instead of the original is authorized by new CPLR § 2101(e). The beginning of the last sentence, stating that the action shall continue in the second court as if originally instituted therein, appears in varying forms in all of the CPA provisions governing removal that are covered by new CPLR § 325. CPA §§ 110, 110-a(3), 110-b(2), 190 and 190-a. This rule would of course give way to a specific provision to the contrary, such as the portion of new CPLR § 325(e) preserving an objection to jurisdiction after removal from a County Court to the Supreme Court, and the preservation of the right to jury trial after transfer to a Surrogate’s Court under new CPLR § 325(d). The remainder of the last sentence replaces CPA § 95. The last sentence of § 95 has been omitted as unnecessary, since it merely specifies a particular instance of the rule that the action continues in the second court as if originally instituted therein. The reference to a “bond, undertaking or recognizance” is also deleted since this subject has been covered in new CPLR Article 25, dealing with undertakings generally. The provision in CPA §§ 190 and 190-a that the removal order takes effect from its entry by the county clerk has been omitted. Since the orders covered by §§ 190 and 190-a are Supreme Court orders, they would in any event be entered by the county clerk under new CPLR § 2220.
Subd (c) is taken from subd 3 of CPA § 110-b. No similar provision appears in any of the other general removal provisions. Its insertion in § 110-b is probably due to the fact that this kind of removal is purely voluntary and its use is to be encouraged. The rule expressed in the second sentence is a reasonable one; in the absence of such a provision it seems that allowance of disbursements in the first court would depend on the order of removal. See Bridge Properties, Inc. v Securitas Realty Corp. 185 Misc 348, 57 NYS2d 861 (NY City Ct 1945). The rule of the first sentence resolves a difference in the interests of litigants and clerks in favor of the litigant. It requires the clerk of the second court to perform services without receiving the customary fees, but a contrary rule would work greater hardship on the litigant by requiring double payments.
Amendment History
Add, L 1962, ch 308, § 1, eff Sept 1, 1963; amd by Judicial Conference, eff Sept 1, 1964.
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: procedure for removing a case New Yorktransfer of case papers between New York courtsNew York removal stay of proceedingsCPLR fees credited after case removal