(a) From Appellate Terms. An appeal may be taken to the appellate division, from an order of the appellate term which determines an appeal from a judgment or order of a lower court, by permission of the appellate term or, in case of refusal, of the appellate division. When permission to appeal is sought from an order granting or affirming the granting of a new trial or hearing, the appellant shall stipulate that, upon affirmance, judgment absolute may be entered against him.
§ 5703.Appeals to appellate division from appellate courts.
Article 57. Appeals to the Appellate Division · Last amended 1963 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 5703 covers second-level appeals to the Appellate Division: from an Appellate Term's order by permission, and from a county court's or supreme court special term's order deciding a lower-court appeal, as of right.
Full Text of CPLR 5703
(b) From Other Appellate Courts. An appeal may be taken to the appellate division as of right from an order of a county court or a special term of the supreme court which determines an appeal from a judgment of a lower court.
Plain-English Summary
Some appeals pass through more than one appellate stop before reaching the Appellate Division. CPLR 5703 addresses two of those routes.
Subdivision (a) covers the Appellate Term, the intermediate appellate body that hears appeals from lower courts in certain judicial departments. A party who wants to take an Appellate Term's decision further, to the Appellate Division, needs permission, first from the Appellate Term itself, and if it's refused, from the Appellate Division. If the order under review granted or affirmed a new trial, the party seeking permission has to stipulate that judgment absolute may be entered against them if the order is affirmed, the same trade-off CPLR 5601 and 5602 use for appeals to the Court of Appeals.
Subdivision (b) covers a different pairing: a county court or a special term of the supreme court acting as an appellate body, deciding an appeal from a lower court's judgment. An order coming out of that appeal can go to the Appellate Division as of right, no permission needed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you appeal an Appellate Term decision to the Appellate Division?
Yes, by permission, first from the Appellate Term and, if refused, from the Appellate Division itself.
Do you need a stipulation to appeal an Appellate Term new-trial order?
Yes. If the order granted or affirmed a new trial, the party seeking permission to appeal must stipulate that judgment absolute may be entered against them upon affirmance.
Can you appeal a county court's decision on a lower-court appeal?
Yes, as of right, when a county court or a special term of the supreme court decides an appeal from a lower court judgment.
What's the difference between CPLR 5703(a) and 5703(b)?
Subdivision (a) requires permission for appeals from the Appellate Term. Subdivision (b) allows an as-of-right appeal from a county court or special term acting as an appellate body.
What is an Appellate Term in New York?
An intermediate appellate body that reviews judgments and orders from certain lower courts before a further appeal can reach the Appellate Division.
Advisory Committee Notes
(See also Advisory Committee Notes preceding § 5701, under subheading “Appeals from appellate courts.”).
Subd (a) of this section is taken from subd 1 of CPA § 623. It refers to the Appellate Terms in the First and Second Departments and not to a term of the Supreme Court in Erie county hearing appeals from the Buffalo City Court. Cf. 9 Carmody-Wait, Cyclopedia of New York Practice 682–84 (1954). It has been expanded to include new material which was formerly found in the court rules of the Appellate Terms and Appellate Divisions of the First and Second Departments. Rule X of the Appellate Division, First Department, and rule XXVI of the Appellate Division, Second Department, require that permission to appeal from a determination of the Appellate Term must first be sought from the Appellate Term. Rule VII of the Appellate Term in both the First and Second Departments requires that when permission to appeal from an order granting a new trial is sought the person seeking permission must file with his notice of application for permission to appeal a stipulation that if the order is affirmed judgment or order absolute shall be rendered against him. The content of those rules is of such significance that it is placed in the act.
Subd (b) of this section is taken from subd 2 of CPA § 623. It has been rephrased without any change in substance intended.
Amendment History
Add, L 1962, ch 308, 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: appeal from appellate term to appellate divisionappeal appellate term decision New Yorksecond appeal to appellate divisioncounty court appellate decision appeal