Appeals to the Appellate Term

The Appellate Term of the Supreme Court of the State of New York is an intermediate appellate court that hears appeals from the lower courts of New York City and, in part of the state, from certain local courts on Long Island. If you lost a case in one of these lower courts — for example, a landlord-tenant matter in Housing Court or a small civil claim — the Appellate Term is most often the court that will review the decision for legal error before any further appeal is possible.

The Appellate Term is a specialized branch of the Appellate Division. It exists so that the large volume of appeals from the busy lower courts can be heard efficiently, by panels of justices, without overwhelming the Appellate Division itself. Understanding which court hears your appeal, and the strict rules that govern it, is the first step in protecting your right to appeal.

What Is the Appellate Term?

The Appellate Term is an intermediate appellate court created within the Supreme Court system to hear appeals from the lower courts. Cases are decided by panels of justices who review the record from the trial court and the parties’ written arguments. It does not conduct new trials, hear new evidence, or re-decide questions of fact that were properly resolved below; instead, it reviews whether the lower court correctly applied the law.

The Appellate Term hears appeals from the following courts:

• The Civil Court of the City of New York, including its Housing Part, which handles landlord-tenant and other housing disputes;
• The Criminal Court of the City of New York, which handles misdemeanors and lesser offenses;
• In the Second Department, the District Courts of Nassau and Suffolk Counties, and certain city, town, and village courts.

The First and Second Department Appellate Terms

There are two Appellate Terms, organized to match the two downstate Departments of the Appellate Division:

• The Appellate Term of the First Department hears appeals from the lower courts in Manhattan (New York County) and the Bronx (Bronx County).
• The Appellate Term of the Second Department is organized by judicial districts and hears appeals from the lower courts in Brooklyn (Kings County), Queens, and Staten Island (Richmond County), as well as the District Courts of Nassau and Suffolk and certain other local courts on Long Island.

Determining the correct Appellate Term, and the correct judicial district within the Second Department, is a threshold question. Filing in the wrong court, or missing a procedural requirement, can forfeit your right to be heard.

What Kinds of Cases Does the Appellate Term Hear?

Because it sits above the lower courts, the Appellate Term tends to hear matters that are smaller in dollar amount or lesser in severity than those that go directly to the Appellate Division. Typical appeals include:

• Smaller civil disputes, such as contract claims, consumer matters, and money judgments within the lower courts’ jurisdictional limits;
• Landlord-tenant and housing appeals, including holdover and nonpayment proceedings and decisions of the Housing Part;
• Other lower-court matters within the Civil Court’s and the District and local courts’ authority.

Our firm handles civil appeals; if you are weighing whether to appeal a lower-court decision, our overview of civil appeals in NYC explains how we evaluate cases and what an appeal involves.

How the Appellate Term Differs From the Appellate Division

The two courts hear appeals from different levels of the trial system. The Appellate Division hears appeals directly from the Supreme Court (the trial-level court of general jurisdiction) and from the Surrogate’s Court and Family Court. The Appellate Term, by contrast, hears appeals from the lower courts — the Civil Court, the Criminal Court, and the District and other local courts described above. In short, the Appellate Division reviews the higher trial courts, while the Appellate Term reviews the lower ones. Our explanation of the appeals process in New York shows how these courts fit together.

Starting an Appeal: The Notice of Appeal and 30-Day Deadline

An appeal to the Appellate Term is started by filing and serving a notice of appeal. In civil cases, the notice of appeal generally must be filed within 30 days after the appealing party is served with a copy of the judgment or order together with written notice of its entry. This deadline is jurisdictional, which means it is strict and cannot be extended for good cause once it has passed. Missing it can permanently end the right to appeal, which is why prompt action is essential.

The Record and the Briefs

After the notice of appeal is filed, the appeal is perfected by assembling the record and submitting written briefs. The record contains the relevant papers and proceedings from the lower court — the pleadings, the order or judgment appealed from, and, where applicable, transcripts of the testimony or proceedings. The briefs are the written legal arguments: the appellant explains why the lower court’s decision was wrong, the respondent explains why it should stand, and the appellant may reply. The Appellate Term decides most appeals on these written submissions, though argument may be available in appropriate cases.

Further Review After the Appellate Term

The Appellate Term is generally not the end of the road, but further review is not automatic. A party who loses at the Appellate Term generally must obtain permission to appeal to the Appellate Division — either from the Appellate Term itself or from the Appellate Division — before the higher court will hear the case. Because this further review is discretionary, it is granted in only a limited set of cases, which makes the briefing at the Appellate Term itself especially important.

Appellate deadlines are strict and unforgiving, and the 30-day window to file a notice of appeal can pass quickly. If you are considering an appeal to the Appellate Term, or are unsure which court should hear your case, please contact us promptly. You can reach the Law Offices of Albert Goodwin, PLLC at 212-233-1233 or by email at email@appealappeal.com to discuss your options before any deadline expires.