THE COURTS
ERIE COUNTY
Revision and Restatement of the Rules of Civil Procedure; Civil Division; No. 90021-2012
[42 Pa.B. 6132]
[Saturday, September 29, 2012]
Order And Now, this 13th day of September, 2012, Rules 1920.16(1), 1920.51, 1920.53, 1920.55, 1920.73, and 1920.74 of the Local Rules of Civil Procedure for the Court of Common Pleas of Erie County, Pennsylvania are amended in the following form and they shall be effective 30 days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
Rules 1920.16(1) and 1920.55 have been renumbered to 1920.31 and 1920.55-2 respectively, to correspond with the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure.
Rule 1920.75 of the Local Rules of Civil Procedure for the Court of Common Pleas of Erie County, Pennsylvania is deleted and rescinded effective 30 days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
By the Court
ERNEST J. DiSANTIS, Jr.,
President JudgeLocal Rule 1920.31. Claims for Child And/Or Spousal Support.
(a) A claim for child and/or spousal support raised in an action for divorce by complaint, counterclaim or petition shall be substantially in the form set forth in Pa. R.C.P. 1910.27.
(b) Where a claim for child and/or spousal support is raised in an action for divorce, a true and correct copy of the complaint, counterclaim, or petition by which the claim for child and/or spousal support is raised shall be filed with the Non-Support Intake Office. The claim for child support shall be docketed in the Non-Support Intake Office and shall thereafter proceed in accordance with Pa. R.C.P. 1910.1 et seq. and local rules governing proceedings for child support. The docket entry in the Non-Support Intake Office shall include a reference to the appearance docket number of the divorce action.
Local Rule 1920.51. Hearing by the Court. Appointment of Master. Notice of Hearing.
(a) Upon Motion of either party or upon its own Motion, the Court may appoint a Master to hear testimony and return the record together with the Report and Recommendation to Court. The Motion shall be filed with the Office of the Prothonotary. If the Motion is filed by a party, then the Motion must be accompanied by the appropriate fee, as established by the Court. The moving party shall certify that all the parties have complied with the requirement of Pa.R.C.P. 1920.31, Pa.R.C.P. 1920.33 and Pa.R.C.P. 1920.46. The Motion and proposed Order requesting the appointment of a Master shall be in conformity with L.R.C.P. 1920.74.
(1) Masters shall be appointed in rotation from the list of permanent part-time Masters appointed as such by the Court to determine issues of divorce, equitable distribution of property, permanent alimony and all other issues relevant thereto. If all Court appointed Masters are conflicted out of serving, the Court may appoint a one-time Master for the hearing.
(2) A Master shall be appointed to hear a claim of child and/or spousal support only upon presentation of an Affidavit of the party supplementing the Motion for appointment of a Master showing special circumstances which justify a departure from the procedure of Erie L.R. 1920.16. Should it later appear that special circumstances justifying referral of a claim for child and/or spousal support do not exist, either party or the Master may petition the Court to refer the claim to the Non-Support Intake Office.
(3) Upon appointment of a Master to hear issues which require expedited disposition (including, but not limited to, alimony pendente lite, child and/or spousal support when referred to a Master, occupancy of the marital residence, maintenance of insurance policies, and Counsel fees and expenses), a preliminary record hearing will be held before the Master within thirty (30) days of the entry of the Order appointing a Master. Where discovery has not been completed or where all documents required to be filed by Pa.R.C.P. 1920.31 have not been filed prior to the preliminary hearing, the Master may, in his or her discretion, proceed with the hearing and filing of a report and recommendations (which may include recommended sanctions for failure to comply with Pa.R.C.P. 1920.31) or continue the hearing until said documents have been filed.
(b) Pre-hearing Status Conference
In actions where expedited disposition is not required,
(1) The Master shall within fifteen days after receiving notice of the Master's appointment schedule a date for a pre-hearing status conference to be held prior to the date of the Master's hearing and shall give notice of the time and place of the pre-hearing status conference by First Class Mail to counsel for represented parties and directly to any unrepresented party. Said notice shall be mailed at least five business days prior to the scheduled date of the conference. The conference shall be attended by Counsel of Record, only, if all parties are represented by counsel.
(2) At the pre-hearing status conference, the Master shall review:
(A) The positions of the parties on each Claim, including those issues on which settlement has been reached;
(B) Discovery which has been completed, including the inventory and pretrial statements pursuant to Pa.R.C.P. 1920.33;
(C) Any documentary evidence to be presented at the hearing;
(D) The names and addresses of each witness any party proposes to call at the hearing;
(E) All matters which may be stipulated by the parties at the hearing;
(F) Establish a schedule for filing of Pretrial Narrative Statements, completion of discovery and any other relevant matters; and
(G) Such other relevant matters as should be raised by either of the parties or the Master.
(c) Post-Status Conference
(1) After the pre-hearing status conference the Master shall:
(A) Prepare a summary of the discussions and action taken at the pre-hearing status conference, including a statement of any stipulations, and of any matters which have been settled between the parties and which will not be raised at the hearing before the Master;
(B) Establish a schedule for the filing or service of any additional pleadings or discovery which may be deemed necessary and set hearing date(s);
(C) Serve a copy of the summary and filing schedule on counsel for the parties, or on any unrepresented party; and
(D) Indicate the amount of additional master's fees to be paid by the litigants prior to hearing.
(d) Master's Hearing
(1) The Master shall establish a hearing date or dates at the pre-hearing status conference. These dates shall be included in the summary prepared pursuant to Section c (post status conference), as well as in the formal notice of Master's hearing as required by Pa.R.C.P. 1920.51(b). At least twenty (20) days written notice of the time and place of any Master's hearing shall be given to the attorneys of record (or the parties where no attorney has appeared in the case) by the Master by ordinary mail.
(2) Counsel and parties will be expected to be present and participate during the entirety of the Master's hearing; otherwise they shall be subject to sanctions or other remedies deemed appropriate by the Court.
(e) Continuances
(1) A request shall be granted by the Master if both parties consent in writing.
(2) All other requests for continuance shall be at the discretion of the Master, unless otherwise ordered by the Court.
(f) Settlement
(1) In the event the parties reach a negotiated settlement, then both parties must notify the Master of such agreement in writing, and both parties must request a postponement or cancellation of the Master's hearing, in order to postpone or cancel the Master's hearing.
(2) The parties may attend the scheduled Master's hearing at the time scheduled for the purpose of entering the substance of their agreement on the record.
(g) Fees and Costs
(1) The initial fees, costs and compensation of the Master shall be in accordance with Administrative Order In Re Divorce Masters Miscellaneous Docket No. 90001-07 and any amendments thereto.
(2) The Master shall determine additional fees due in accordance with the rate set by the Court and shall require an advance deposit of said amount prior to scheduling any further hearing. The Master shall have the authority to apportion the additional fees and advance deposits between the parties prior to trial, and the Master may reapportion such fees in the Master's Report.
(3) The Master shall receive compensation for a minimum of four hours for each day of a scheduled hearing that is not either:
(A) Continued in accordance with Erie L.R. 1920.51(e); or
(B) Cancelled with notice to the master in writing at least fourteen (14) days prior to the scheduled hearing date for the reason either that the case has been resolved or withdrawn.
(4) In the event the Master fails to grant the continuance, the parties may petition the Court for a continuance. The Court may grant a continuance and will determine the amount of additional master's fees, if appropriate.
(5) At the conclusion of the case, the Master shall prepare a certification indicating the amount of Master's fees paid the disposition thereof.
Local Rule 1920.53. Hearing By Master. Report.
If the issues of divorce or annulment are raised for determination by the Master, then these issues shall be first determined prior to a trial on the economic issues.
(a) Where the Master concludes that a recommendation to grant the divorce or annulment should be filed, the Master shall notify the parties of this conclusion in writing (a copy of which shall be attached to the Master's report) subsequent to the termination of the hearing(s). The Master shall forthwith proceed to hear testimony and take evidence on all other matters at issue in the action prior to the filing of a report and recommendation.
(b) Where the Master concludes that a recommendation to deny the divorce or annulment should be filed, the Master shall file a report and recommendation in accordance with the terms of Pa.R.C.P. 1920.53(A). No evidence or testimony shall be taken on any other matter at issue unless and until the Court determines that a divorce or annulment should be granted.
Local Rule 1920.55-2. Master's Report. Notice. Exceptions. Final Decree.
(a) In the event exceptions are not timely filed by either party, either party may praecipe the Court for the entry of a final order.
(b) Where the parties stipulate on the record that additional documentary evidence shall be submitted subsequent to the hearing(s), the Master shall file the report and recommendation within thirty (30) days of receipt of that evidence or in accordance with Pa.R.C.P. 1920.53(a)(1), whichever date is later.
(c) Exceptions must be timely filed at the Office of the Prothonotary, and shall be served on the opposing party or their counsel of record. Only matters raised on exceptions will be considered by the Court, and any matters not raised on exceptions shall be deemed to be waived.
(1) Within twenty (20) days of filing the exceptions, the moving party shall file their request for argument and proposed Order with the Court Administrator.
(2) Both parties shall file their briefs no later than ten (10) days prior to the scheduled argument. If the briefs are not timely filed, then the Court may dismiss the exceptions, refuse or limit argument on the exceptions, or enter any other relief deemed appropriate by the Court.
(3) Copies of exceptions and briefs shall be provided to all counsel of record (or to a party directly if unrepresented by counsel) the Master and to the Judge.
Local Rule 1920.73. Praecipe to Transmit Record.
(a) The Praecipe to Transmit Record shall follow the form set forth in Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure 1920.73(b).
(b) If the parties have dependent children 18 years or under, a copy of the parties' completion certification form or waiver of the ''Children Cope with Divorce'' program may be attached to the Praecipe to Transmit Divorce, if completed by the parties. Although, in accordance with 23 Pa.C.S. § 5332, the Court may require the parties to attend the program, the failure of a party to attend the program shall not impede the transmittal of the record. As such, upon proper praecipe, a final decree may be issued even if one or both parties have not attended the Children Cope with Divorce'' program. Notwithstanding the above, parties who are otherwise obliged to attend the program by Court Order, must still attend the program.
Local Rule 1920.74. Motion for Appointment of Master.
MOTION FOR APPOINTMENT OF MASTER ______ (Plaintiff) (Defendant), moves the Court to appoint a Master with respect to the following claims:
____ Divorce ____ Distribution of Property ____ Annulment ____ Counsel Fees ____ Alimony ____ Costs & Expenses ____ Alimony Pendente Lite ____ Support 1. Discovery is complete as to the claim(s) for which the appointment of a Master is requested.
(a) Plaintiff's Inventory filed: ______ .
(b) Defendant's Inventory filed: ______ .
(c) Plaintiff's Income & Expense statement
filed: ______ .(d) Defendant's Income & Expense statement
filed: ______ .If no Inventory and/or Income and Expense Statement has been filed, a copy of the Court Order allowing appointment of a Master must accompany this Motion.
2. The non-moving party (has) (has not) appeared in the action (personally) (by his attorney, ______ , Esquire).
3. The Statutory ground(s) for divorce (is)(are) __________
_________________ .
4. Delete the inapplicable paragraph(s):
(a) The action is not contested.
(b) An agreement has been reached with respect to the following claims: __________
_________________ .
(c) The action is contested with respect to the following claims: __________
_________________ .
5. The action (involves) (does not involve) complex issues of law or fact.
6. The hearing is expected to take ____ (hours) (days).
7. The full name, address and telephone number of the non-moving party (or their attorney, if represented) is
__________
_________________ .
8. Additional information, if any, relevant to the Motion: __________
_________________ .
As the moving party or attorney for the moving party, I certify that all parties have complied with the requirements of Pa.R.C.P. 1930.50 (Discovery), 1920.31 (Filing of Income & Expense Statement), 1920.33 (Filing of Inventory), and 1920.46 (Military Service).
DATE: ____ _________________ Signature of moving counsel or party Typed Name, Address and Phone _________________ _________________ ( )
ORDER:
IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF ERIE COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
CIVIL ACTION—LAW
PLAINTIFF, ) Plaintiff ) ) v. ) No. 11390 - 2005 ) DEFENDANT, ) Defendant )
ORDER APPOINTING MASTER AND NOW, this __ day of _____ , 20__ , upon consideration of the foregoing Motion for Appointment of Master, it is hereby Ordered, Adjudged and Decreed that _________________ , Esquire, is hereby appointed Master with respect to all claims of record as of the time of the Master's hearing and all issues otherwise raised or preserved by the pleadings.
BY THE COURT:
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 12-1897. Filed for public inspection September 28, 2012, 9:00 a.m.]
No part of the information on this site may be reproduced for profit or sold for profit.This material has been drawn directly from the official Pennsylvania Bulletin full text database. Due to the limitations of HTML or differences in display capabilities of different browsers, this version may differ slightly from the official printed version.
