(a) Preferences in the hearing of an appeal may be granted in the discretion of the court to which the appeal is taken.
R 5521.Preferences.
Article 55. Appeals Generally · Last amended 2020 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 5521 leaves the decision to grant a preference in hearing an appeal to the court's discretion, while requiring certain Family Court Act and Social Services Law appeals to be preferred automatically.
Full Text of CPLR 5521
(b) Consistent with the provisions of section one thousand one hundred twelve of the family court act, appeals from orders, judgments or decrees in proceedings brought pursuant to articles three, seven, ten and ten-A and parts one and two of article six of the family court act, and pursuant to sections three hundred fifty-eight-a, three hundred eighty-three-c, three hundred eighty-four, and three hundred eighty-four-b of the social services law, and pursuant to paragraph (d) of subdivision four and subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (d) of subdivision five of section eighty-nine of the public officers law, shall be given preference and may be brought on for argument on such terms and conditions as the court may direct without the necessity of a motion.
Plain-English Summary
Some appeals need to be heard sooner than others, and CPLR 5521(a) leaves that call to the discretion of the court the appeal is taken to, rather than setting out a rigid list of preferred case types. A party seeking a preference typically has to ask for one and explain why the ordinary calendar order should not apply.
Subdivision (b) departs from that discretionary approach for a defined group of cases: appeals from orders, judgments, or decrees in certain Family Court Act proceedings (covering matters like juvenile delinquency, whether a child is in need of supervision, child protection, guardianship, and termination of parental rights) and related Social Services Law and Public Officers Law proceedings must be given a preference and can be brought on for argument on whatever terms the court sets, without the need for a motion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I ask an appellate court to hear my appeal faster than usual?
Yes. CPLR 5521(a) lets the court to which the appeal is taken grant a preference in the exercise of its discretion, though it is not required to do so outside the categories in subdivision (b).
Which appeals get an automatic preference under CPLR 5521?
Appeals from certain Family Court Act proceedings and related Social Services Law and Public Officers Law matters must be given a preference and may be brought on for argument without a motion.
Do I need to file a motion to get a preference for a Family Court Act appeal covered by subdivision (b)?
No. CPLR 5521(b) allows those appeals to be brought on for argument on the terms the court directs without requiring a motion for a preference.
What does a preference change about how my appeal is handled?
A preference generally moves the appeal ahead of others in the order it is calendared and argued, though the court to which the appeal is taken controls the specific terms and conditions.
Is a preference under CPLR 5521 the same as a stay of enforcement?
No. A preference only affects how quickly the appeal is heard and decided; it has nothing to do with whether enforcement of the underlying judgment or order is stayed, which CPLR 5519 addresses separately.
Advisory Committee Notes
This rule effects a change in the treatment of preferences on appeal. CPA § 138 and a part of § 139 formerly dealt with this subject.
Former § 138 had encompassed preferences on the trial or hearing of a case as well as preferences on appeal. In 1940, the Judicial Council criticized the arbitrary preferences granted by the section and recommended limiting its scope of preferences on appeals and adopting a new rule of civil practice regarding trial preferences. See 6 NY Jud Council Rep 267–287 (1940). Its recommendations were adopted. See Laws 1940, c. 247; CPA § 138; R Civ P 151. While the report was primarily directed at trial preferences, the Council’s criticism of § 138 applied equally to preferences on appeal. For example, subd 3 was limited in operation to the Court of Appeals, but the reasons for allowing or denying a preference in such a case apply with equal vigor to a similar case before another appellate court. This rule, in contrast to former § 138, applies to all appellate courts.
This rule has been drafted in the belief that the matter of preferences is more appropriately and successfully handled by appellate courts in the exercise of their discretion than by setting forth classes of preferred cases in statutes or rules. Cf. CPLR § 5519(c). The inherent power of these courts to deal with preferences has been recognized in New York. See Riglander v Star Company, 98 App Div 101, 90 NY Supp 772 (1st Dept) affd without opinion, 181 NY 531, 73 NE 1131 (1904); Clarke v Eighth Avenue RR. 114 Misc 707, 88 NY Supp 14 (Sup Ct 1920).
This rule, in effect, belatedly adopts a suggestion that a “vast number” of preferences be eliminated, “leaving all cases to be heard in their regular order, applying the old familiar maxim ‘first come, first served,’ giving the right to the court for special and urgent reasons to advance a case out of its order.” 10 NYSB Ass’n Rep 142 (1887). A few specific preferences remain; they are found in the Consolidated Laws. See, e.g., Pub Serv Law § 21.
Amendment History
Add, L 1962, ch 308, eff Sept 1, 1963; amd, L 1991, ch 582, § 6, eff Jan 1, 1992; L 2005, ch 3, § 65 (Part A), eff Dec 21, 2005; L 2016, ch 487, § 2, effective May 27, 2017; L 2019, ch 707, § 2, effective June 17, 2020.
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: preference on appeal New Yorkexpedited appeal New YorkFamily Court appeal preference CPLRCPLR 5521 preferences