Except where otherwise prescribed by law, the proprietor of a newspaper is entitled for publishing a summons, notice, order or other advertisement, required to be published by law or by the order of any court, or of the clerk of a court, to twenty-nine cents per line of a column width not less than ten pica ems, provided that in computing such charge per line the line shall average at least five words for each insertion in newspapers having a circulation of less than two thousand five hundred; twenty-nine and one-half cents per line for newspapers having two thousand five hundred or more circulation and less than five thousand; thirty and one-half cents per line for newspapers having five thousand or more circulation and less than seven thousand five hundred; thirty-one and one-half cents per line for newspapers having seven thousand five hundred or more circulation and less than ten thousand; thirty-two and one-half cents per line for newspapers having ten thousand or more circulation and less than fifteen thousand; and three and one-half cents per line, in addition to the thirty-two and one-half cents for the initial fifteen thousand circulation, for each additional five thousand circulation up to thirty-five thousand circulation and one and one-half cents per line for each additional five thousand possessed by a newspaper. To all of the above rates nine cents per line shall be added to the initial insertion charge of each separate advertisement. To all of the above rates for the initial insertion eight cents per line shall also be added for tabular matter or intricate composition. In reckoning line charges allowance shall be made for date lines, paragraph endings, titles, signatures and similar short lines as full lines where the same are set to conform to the usual rules of composition. Display advertising shall be charged agate measurement (fourteen lines to each inch), ten to thirteen pica ems wide, depending on the makeup of the newspaper publishing such copy. This rate shall not apply to any newspaper printed, principally circulated or having its principal office in the counties of New York or Bronx within the first judicial district or in the county of Kings within the second judicial district or in the county of Richmond within the thirteenth judicial district or in the county of Nassau within the tenth judicial district or in the county of Queens within the eleventh judicial district or in the county of Westchester within the ninth judicial district or in any city having a population of over one hundred seventy-five thousand inhabitants within the eighth judicial district, where the rate for such publication may be equal to but shall not exceed the regularly established classified advertising rate of such newspapers. Every newspaper making claim for compensation under the provisions of this section must be established at least one year and entered in the post office as second class matter.
§ 8007.Printers
Article 80. Fees · Last amended 2009 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 8007 sets a per-line fee schedule, scaled to a newspaper's circulation, for publishing a summons, notice, order, or other advertisement required by law or court order, with a separate rate cap for high-circulation newspapers in and around New York City.
Full Text of CPLR 8007
Plain-English Summary
When a court or the law requires public notice, such as a summons published because a defendant cannot be found and served personally, someone has to pay the newspaper that runs it. CPLR 8007 lays out a per-line rate that climbs in steps as a newspaper's circulation grows, from a base rate for papers under two thousand five hundred circulation up through additional per-line increments for each higher circulation bracket. On top of the base line rate, the section adds a flat per-line surcharge for the first insertion of each separate advertisement, and a further surcharge if the material involves tabular matter or intricate composition that takes more work to typeset.
The rate schedule also spells out how to count a line: short lines such as date lines, paragraph endings, titles, and signatures count as full lines when they follow the newspaper's usual composition rules, and display advertising is measured by agate line width instead. This level of detail exists because the fee is meant to track the newspaper's actual production cost, not just an arbitrary flat charge.
A separate rule applies to newspapers based in or primarily circulated in New York City and several of the surrounding downstate counties and judicial districts, along with any newspaper in a large city within the eighth judicial district: instead of the tiered per-line schedule, those newspapers can charge no more than their own regularly established classified advertising rate. Finally, a newspaper can only claim payment under this section if it has been in business for at least a year and holds second-class mail status with the post office, a threshold meant to keep the fee available only to established publications.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does CPLR 8007 do?
It sets how much a newspaper can charge for publishing a summons, notice, order, or other legally required advertisement, with the per-line rate scaled to the newspaper's circulation.
Does every newspaper charge the same rate under CPLR 8007?
No. The per-line rate rises in steps as circulation increases, and newspapers based in New York City and several nearby downstate counties and large cities are instead capped at their own regular classified advertising rate rather than the tiered schedule.
Are there extra charges beyond the base per-line rate?
Yes. The section adds a flat per-line surcharge to the first insertion of each separate advertisement, and a further surcharge when the material requires tabular matter or intricate composition.
What qualifies a newspaper to charge fees under CPLR 8007?
The newspaper must have been established for at least one year and be entered with the post office as second-class matter before it can claim compensation under the section.
How are short lines like signatures or date lines counted for billing purposes?
They count as full lines, as long as they are set to conform to the newspaper's usual composition rules, rather than being billed at a reduced rate.
Why does CPLR 8007 treat display advertising differently?
Display advertising is measured by agate line width rather than the standard column-line measurement used for the rest of the schedule, reflecting how that kind of advertising is typically composed.
Advisory Committee Notes
This section is CPA § 1551 with only two minor changes. The phrase “or judge thereof” is omitted as unnecessary. See § 2211. The phrase “or of a surrogate” has also been omitted as unnecessary because fees for printing items which a Surrogate requires to be published are covered by § 287 of the Surrogate’s Court Act, which is virtually identical with CPA § 1551. The only difference between the two sections is that the Surrogate’s Court Act section includes a citation in its list of possible publications, while the civil practice act section includes a summons. In fact, both sections derive from § 3317 of the Code of Civil Procedure. Though it would be economical to recombine them, publication is as important in general litigation as it is in Surrogate’s Court matters, and any incorporation by reference should be made in the Surrogate’s Court Act, in connection with an overall revision and study of its provisions.
Amendment History
Add, L 1962, ch 308, § 1; amd, L 1966, ch 458, § 2; L 1966, ch 885, § 2; L 1971, ch 1198, § 2; L 1974, ch 691, § 2; L 1979, ch 719, § 1; L 1980, ch 500, § 1; L 1984, ch 679, § 1; L 1988, ch 354, § 1; L 1990, ch 776, § 1; L 1991, ch 449, § 1, eff Sept 1, 1991; L 2009, ch 450, § 1, eff Sept 16, 2009.
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: newspaper publication fee New Yorkcost to publish summons by newspaperlegal notice publication rate NYclassified ad rate legal notice