For Purposes of CPLR 205 (a) (Allowing the Commencement of a New Action within Six Months of the Termination of a Prior Action) a Prior Action Terminates When a Nondiscretionary Appeal Is “Exhausted,” Even If the Appeal Is Dismissed As Abandoned

The Court of Appeals, in a full-fledged opinion by Judge Fahey, determined that the six-month period for commencing a new action after the termination of a prior action afforded by CPLR 205 (a) runs from the termination of an appeal, even if the appeal is dismissed as abandoned. Here the plaintiff started an action in federal court which was dismissed by District Court.  Plaintiff then appealed as of right to the Second Circuit.  The appeal was dismissed for failure to file the brief and appendix.  Plaintiff, before the federal appeal was dismissed, started an action in state court. The state court action was started more than six months after the District Court had dismissed the federal action and defendants moved to dismiss the state action under CPLR 205 (a).  The Court of Appeals held that the CPLR 205 (a) six-month period did not start running until the federal appeal was dismissed.  Therefore the state action was timely commenced:

In its current form, CPLR 205 (a) provides:

“If an action is timely commenced and is terminated in any other manner than by a voluntary discontinuance, a failure to obtain personal jurisdiction over the defendant, a dismissal of the complaint for neglect to prosecute the action, or a final judgment upon the merits, the plaintiff . . . may commence a new action upon the same transaction or occurrence or series of transactions or occurrences within six months after the termination provided that the new action would have been timely commenced at the time of commencement of the prior action and that service upon defendant is effected within such six-month period.” * * *

… [T]his Court has not addressed the issue of when a prior action terminates for purposes of CPLR 205 (a) where, as here, an appeal is taken as of right but is dismissed by the intermediate appellate court due to the plaintiff’s failure to perfect. We resolve that question now by … holding that, where an appeal is taken as of right, the prior action terminates for purposes of CPLR 205 (a) when the nondiscretionary appeal is truly “exhausted,” either by a determination on the merits or by dismissal of the appeal, even if the appeal is dismissed as abandoned. Malay v City of Syracuse, 2015 NY Slip Op 04164, CtApp 5-14-15