THE COURTS
Title 255—LOCAL
COURT RULES
CHESTER COUNTY
Amendments to Rules of Civil Procedure
[42 Pa.B. 4162]
[Saturday, July 7, 2012]
Order And Now, this 19th day of June, 2012, the following amendments to the Chester County Rules of Civil Procedure are hereby adopted effective thirty (30) days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin, in accordance with Pa.R.C.P. No. 239(d). Previous local rules of civil procedure nos. 1301.1, 1302.1, 1302.2, 5003, 5003(a), 5003(b), 5003(c), 5003(d) and 5003(e) are hereby repealed as of the effective date of the following rules.
HONORABLE JAMES P. MacELREE, II,
President JudgeRule 5003. Appeals from Real Estate Assessments.
The following rules shall apply to all appeals from a real estate assessment determined by the Board of Assessment Appeals of Chester County (''Board''). These rules apply to all appeals taken following their effective date and may be applied as appropriate to current appeals ninety (90) days after their effective date.
Definitions:
Board—The Chester County Board of Assessment Appeals.
Taxing Authority—School Districts, the County of Chester and municipalities (cities, boroughs, townships).
Party—Appellant, the Board, and any other person or entity entitled to notice of the appeal who or which enters an appearance.
Property Owner—as used herein, the term ''owner'' or ''property owner'' includes all owners of the property if there is more than one owner.
Date of Notification—date which appears as such on the decision of the Board.
Commercial Property—any property whose purpose is to generate income for its owner.
Rule 5003(a). Filing Instructions.
1. An appeal from the decision of the Board shall be filed within thirty (30) days from the date of notification.
2. Within ten (10) days after filing the appeal, the appellant shall serve a copy of the appeal on the Board, on all affected taxing authorities at their business addresses and, if the property owner is not the appellant, on the property owner at his, her, its or their registered address or addresses as shown on the tax records of Chester County.
3. Within twenty (20) days of service of the appeal, the appellant shall file an affidavit of service.
4. The Board shall automatically be a party to an appeal unless it specifically declines that status in writing. Any taxing authority or property owner entitled to be notified of an appeal may become a party to the proceedings by filing an entry of appearance within thirty (30) days of service of such notice. The entry of appearance shall be deemed to deny the allegations in the appellant's petition, except for the names of the parties and the location of the taxable property. However, any party may plead additional material by way of Answer or New Matter, as appropriate, within thirty (30) days of entering an appearance.
Rule 5003(b). Contents of Appeal.
1. Names and addresses of the taxpayer and the taxing authorities.
2. Identification of the property, including street address and tax parcel number.
3. Reason(s) for the appeal. For purposes of this section, where a challenge is based on fair market value, it shall be sufficient to state that the assessment is excessive or inadequate. Where the challenge is based on uniformity, it shall be sufficient to state lack of uniformity as the basis for the appeal.
4. Copy of any applicable decision of the Board.
Rule 5003(c). Discovery Procedures.
1. The appellant shall provide the Board and the other parties to the appeal with a copy of his, her, its or their appraisal within sixty (60) days of filing the appeal. The other parties shall then have ninety (90) days from the receipt of the appellant's appraisal to provide the appellant with a counter-appraisal. Any party may designate an appraisal submitted to the Board as its appraisal for the purposes of the appeal. Appraisals must certify that the appraiser's fee is not contingent upon the results of the appeal.
2. If a party fails to provide an appraisal within the time provided by this rule, by leave of court, or within such time as may be agreed to by the parties and approved by the Court, then, upon motion, the Court may preclude that party from presenting evidence of valuation at trial.
3. In cases involving commercial properties, the taxpayer shall provide, where applicable, the following to all other parties within thirty (30) days of filing the appeal:
(A) Income and expense statements for three (3) years prior to the appeal year;
(B) A current rent roll, including a list of tenants, rental amounts, and lease periods, and a sample lease with any special terms or renewal options;
(C) The right to inspect the property at a reasonable time with notice.
4. The names of all witnesses to be called at trial by any party, other than rebuttal witnesses later determined, shall be provided to all other parties within one hundred fifty (150) days of the date of filing of the appeal.
5. In any appeal involving a claim of exemption from real estate taxation, discovery shall be permitted as set forth in the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure and shall be governed by Pa.R.C.P. No. 4001 et seq. Discovery requests shall be served within one hundred twenty (120) days of the date of the filing of the appeal.
6. Additional discovery shall be by leave of court only.
7. The matter shall be scheduled for trial one hundred eighty (180) days from the date of the filing of the appeal.
8. Time periods may be extended for cause shown. Any party may at any time, and to obtain relief (advancement or deferral) from the automatic trial listing as set forth in paragraph 7 above must, request an administrative conference in accordance with C.C.R.C.P. No. 249.1 et seq.
Rule 5003(d). Class Action Appeal.
In all cases involving an appeal from class action certification, a full record shall be made before the Board of Assessment Appeals.
Rule 5003(e). Discontinuance.
The appeal may be discontinued only with the agreement of all parties or by leave of court.
COMPULSORY ARBITRATION Rule 1301.1. Cases for Submission to Arbitration
(a) All civil cases at law which are now or hereafter at issue wherein the amount in controversy in each cause of action, i.e., the amount claimed in each count, stated therein, exclusive of interest and costs, does not exceed fifty thousand ($50,000.00) dollars, and which do not involve title to real property, shall be submitted to, heard, and decided by a board of arbitrators consisting of three (3) attorneys admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, actively engaged in the practice of law primarily in Chester County and who maintain an office in Chester County.
(b) The Court Administrator may in his or her discretion consolidate cases for hearing when all the cases are subject to the provisions of the arbitration rules and when they involve common questions of fact. The Court Administrator shall by letter notify all counsel and unrepresented parties of any consolidation.
(c) If the judge who has been assigned a Category A matter shall determine that the case is properly one which should be handled as an arbitration under Category C, the assigned Judge shall order the case to be placed in Category C, and the case shall thenceforth be treated as though it had been so classified as an arbitration case in the first instance. The Court Administrator shall schedule such remanded arbitration cases for hearing as soon as practicable unless otherwise ordered by the assigned Judge.
Rule 1302.1 Administration.
(a) Proceedings under the arbitration rules of this court shall be administered by the office of the Court Administrator of this court.
(b) The Court Administrator shall have the power to prescribe forms and to interpret these rules, subject to review by the court at the request of a party.
(c) In order to be considered for appointment to a board of arbitrators, an attorney admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania who is actively engaged in the practice of law primarily in Chester County and who maintains an office in Chester County shall file with the office of the Court Administrator a certified arbitration registration form indicating whether or not he or she has substantial experience in civil litigation; listing the number of years of such experience and those areas of practice in which he or she has substantial litigation experience and stating if he or she is practicing alone, is a member of a firm, or is associated in some way with one or more other lawyers (either in private practice or as an employee of some public office such as the district attorney's office, public defender's office, legal aid, etc.). Any change in his or her status in this regard shall immediately be reported to the office of the Court Administrator. Upon receipt of a fully completed certified arbitration registration form, the Court Administrator shall add the name of the person submitting the form to the list of those eligible to serve as a member of an arbitration board. Boards of arbitration shall be appointed from the list of members of the bar who have filed such information. The Court Administrator shall have sole authority to determine whether an arbitrator is qualified under these rules.
(d) The chair of the board of arbitrators shall be appointed by the Court Administrator and shall be responsible for the preparation and filing of the board's report and award. All other members of the board of arbitrators shall also be appointed by the Court Administrator.
(e) The Court Administrator shall have the authority to obtain and deliver to the board of arbitrators all papers of record and shall be responsible for the return thereof to the Prothonotary when not in necessary custody of the board. The Court Administrator shall maintain such records as are necessary for the proper administration of the arbitration system, and shall give the arbitrators such assistance as may be necessary to expedite the arbitration process.
(f) The date, time and place of the arbitration hearing shall be assigned by the Prothonotary at the time a Category C action is commenced. The Court Administrator shall provide the Prothonotary with the next reasonably available date for an arbitration hearing, and the Prothonotary shall then mark that date upon the cover sheet when a Category C action is commenced. The notice of the date, time and place of arbitration hearing on the cover sheet shall include the following statement:
''This matter will be heard by a board of arbitrators at the time, date and place specified but, if one or more of the parties is not present at the hearing, the matter may be heard at the same time and date before a judge of the court without the absent party or parties. There is no right to a trial de novo on appeal from a decision entered by a Judge.''Comment: It is anticipated that a hearing will be scheduled no less than six (6) months following the initiation of suit. The Court Administrator will be required to adjust the interval, between filing and hearing date, depending upon the availability of hearing rooms, the volume of cases to be tried and the number of panels to be assigned.
(g) Any party may for good cause object to the matter being submitted to arbitration by notifying the Court Administrator in writing with notice to all other parties. The Court Administrator shall initially make a determination as to the validity of any such objection. Any party dissatisfied with the determination of the Court Administrator shall have the right to have the matter determined by the assigned judge.
(h) All hearings shall be held in the Justice Center at West Chester, unless the arbitrators and all parties agree otherwise.
(i) It is the professional obligation of all members of the bar who qualify as outlined in these Rules to serve on boards of arbitration, unless absent or excused for good cause and compelling reason. If an arbitrator fails to appear, or appears late at the scheduled arbitration hearing without compelling reasons, his or her name shall be stricken from the arbitration list, and he or she will be so notified by the Court Administrator. He or she may be reinstated by application to the court, upon cause shown.
(j) The president judge may strike from the list of eligible arbitrators the name of any attorney who has consistently demonstrated an inability to serve in a proper manner.
Rule 1302.2 Composition of Arbitration Boards.
Each board of arbitrators shall consist of a chair, a non-chair category A and a non-chair category B attorney.
(a)(1) Chair Requirements
Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, the arbitration board shall be chaired by a member of the bar who has been admitted to the practice of law for at least ten (10) years and who has substantial experience in civil litigation.
(a)(2) Non-Chair Category A Attorney Requirements
The attorney should have five (5) years of substantial experience in civil litigation. If no attorney with five (5) years of substantial experience in civil litigation is available to serve, the Court Administrator may authorize an attorney with three (3) years of substantial experience in civil litigation to sit.
(a)(3) Non-Chair Category B Attorney Requirements
Any attorney qualified under these rules to serve as a member of a board of arbitrators.
(b) A list of available arbitrators who are qualified to serve as chair of arbitration boards shall be maintained by the Court Administrator.
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 12-1257. Filed for public inspection July 6, 2012, 9:00 a.m.]
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