Kinds of pleadings
§ 3011. Kinds of pleadings. There shall be a complaint and an answer. An answer may include a counterclaim against a plaintiff and a cross-claim against a defendant. A defendant's pleading against another claimant is an interpleader complaint, or against any other person not already a party is a third-party complaint. There shall be a reply to a counterclaim denominated as such, an answer to an interpleader complaint or third-party complaint, and an answer to a cross-claim that contains a demand for an answer. If no demand is made, the cross-claim shall be deemed denied or avoided. There shall be no other pleading unless the court orders otherwise.
There is a complaint and an answer. An answer may include a counterclaim (against a plaintiff) and a cross-claim (against a co-defendant). A defendant's pleading against a new person is a third-party complaint (or interpleader complaint). There's a reply to a counterclaim so denominated, an answer to interpleader/third-party complaints, and an answer to a cross-claim only if it demands one — if no demand, the cross-claim is deemed denied. ★ No other pleadings unless the court orders.
Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.
This provision appears in Volume 2 — The JG-22 CPLR and in Volume 1 — The JG-22 in Plain English.