A report of a regularly organized stock or commodity market published in a newspaper or periodical of general circulation or in an official publication or trade journal is admissible in evidence to prove the market price or value of any article regularly sold or dealt in on such market. The circumstances of the preparation of such a report may be shown to affect its weight, but they shall not affect its admissibility.
R 4533.Market reports.
Article 45. Evidence · Last amended 1964 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 4533 admits a published report of a regularly organized stock or commodity market, appearing in a newspaper, periodical of general circulation, official publication, or trade journal, to prove the market price or value of an item regularly sold on that market, leaving how the report was prepared to affect only its weight, never its admissibility.
Full Text of CPLR 4533
Plain-English Summary
Proving what something was worth on a given day often means proving what a market said it was worth. CPLR 4533 lets a party establish market price or value through a published market report rather than through a witness who traded on that market. A report of a regularly organized stock or commodity market, published in a newspaper or periodical of general circulation, or in an official publication or trade journal, is admissible to prove the market price or value of an article regularly sold or dealt in on that market.
The section draws a line between admissibility and weight. A party can challenge how the report was compiled, the methodology, the source, the timing, and that challenge can affect how much the fact finder credits the report. But it cannot keep the report out of evidence altogether. The statute is explicit that the circumstances of preparation may affect weight but shall not affect admissibility.
This provision matters most in commercial litigation and damages disputes where the value of a fungible, regularly traded commodity or security at a particular moment is at issue, and no live trader witnessed the specific transaction the case turns on.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does CPLR 4533 let a party prove with a market report?
The market price or value of an article regularly sold or dealt in on a regularly organized stock or commodity market, using a published report of that market.
Where does the market report have to be published?
In a newspaper or periodical of general circulation, or in an official publication or trade journal.
Can a party keep a market report out of evidence by challenging how it was prepared?
No. The statute states the circumstances of preparation may affect the weight given to the report but cannot affect its admissibility.
Does CPLR 4533 apply to any commodity or only certain markets?
It applies to reports of a regularly organized stock or commodity market covering an article regularly sold or dealt in on that market, not to one-off or informal price quotations.
Why does New York let published market reports substitute for live testimony?
Because regularly published market data reflects a broad, contemporaneous record of trading activity that no single witness could recreate as reliably through personal testimony.
Advisory Committee Notes
The rule is the same as former § 375-a, except for minor language changes.
Amendment History
Formerly § 4533, add, L 1962, ch 308; amd, L 1962, ch 315, § 1; L 1964, ch 388, § 23, 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: market report evidence New Yorkstock price newspaper admissiblecommodity market report admissibilityproving market value in courttrade journal price evidence