New York City Courts

The New York City court system consists of the several citywide and state courts.

There are two city courts, the Criminal Court and the Civil Court, and several state courts, the Supreme Court, Surrogate's Court, and Family Court. Unlike the rest of New York, counties within New York City do not have a typical County Court.

The Criminal Court of the City of New York handles misdemeanors (generally, crimes punishable by fine or imprisonment of up to one year) and lesser offenses, and also conducts arraignments (initial court appearances following arrest) and preliminary hearings in felony cases (generally, more serious offenses punishable by imprisonment of more than one year).

The Civil Court of the City of New York decides lawsuits involving claims for damages up to $25,000 and includes a small claims part for cases involving amounts up to $5,000 as well as a housing part for landlord-tenant matters, and also handles other civil matters referred by the Supreme Court. It handles about 25% of all the New York courts' total filings.

The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial court of general jurisdiction, which in New York City hears felony cases and major civil cases. (Lesser criminal and civil cases are heard in the Criminal Court and Civil Court, respectively.) The Supreme Court is located in each of New York City's five counties (boroughs).

The Surrogate's Court of the State of New York is the probate court which oversees the probate of wills and administers estates. Each Surrogate's Court is located in each of New York City's five counties (boroughs).

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