THE COURTS

SCHUYLKILL COUNTY

Administrative Order 2014.1; Revised Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program; No. AD-20-2014

[44 Pa.B. 1879]
[Saturday, March 29, 2014]

Administrative Order

 And Now, this 5th day of March, 2014, at 10:00 a.m., It Is Hereby Ordered, that the Schuylkill County Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program, Section V, is revised and shall be effective 30 days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

 The Court Administrator is directed to:

 1) File seven (7) certified copies of the Administrative Order with the Administrative Office of the Pennsylvania Courts; and

 2) Submit the following items to the Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin:

 a) two (2) certified copies of the Administrative Order;

 b) a copy of the Administrative Order on a computer diskette.

 3) Send one (1) certified copy to the Civil Procedural Rules Committee of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

 4) Forward one (1) copy to the Schuylkill Legal Record for Publication.

 5) Keep continuously available for public inspection and copying in the Office of the Prothonotary.

By the Court

WILLIAM E. BALDWIN, 
President Judge

Order of Court

 And Now, this 5th day of March, 2014 at 10:00, a.m., the Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas hereby revises the established Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program as follows:

 I. All complaints for mortgage foreclosure of residential owner—occupied properties shall be accompanied by a Certification Cover Sheet certifying the real estate location, the occupancy status, and the contact information for plaintiff's representative and/or counsel for plaintiff. The Certification Cover Sheet shall be filed with the complaint and the complaint shall not be accepted by the Prothonotary's Office without the Certification Cover Sheet. (Attachment A—Certification Cover Sheet).

 II. Upon the filing of a complaint in a residential mortgage foreclosure action, the Prothonotary shall provide a copy of the Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program ''Urgent Notice'' to the plaintiff or counsel for plaintiff. (Attachment B—''Urgent Notice''). The plaintiff shall serve a copy of the ''Urgent Notice'' along with the complaint on the defendant[s] in accordance with the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure.

 III. Plaintiff shall file a Certificate of Service stating that the complaint, Certification Cover Sheet and ''Urgent Notice'' were served upon the defendant[s].

 IV. Service of the complaint, Certification Cover Sheet, and ''Urgent Notice'' upon the defendant[s] shall result in an automatic stay of any further proceedings, such as the filing of an answer or the filing for a default judgment, for ninety (90) days from the date of service.

 V. Within seven (7) days following service of the complaint and ''Urgent Notice,'' the defendant[s] shall contact Schuylkill Community Action to schedule an appointment for an intake meeting with the Housing Counselor. The intake meeting shall occur within fourteen (14) days of the initial contact. The defendant[s] shall bring to the meeting and provide to the Housing Counselor all requested financial and employment information to enable the Housing Counselor to draft a written Mortgage Modification Plan.

 At the completion of the intake meeting, the Housing Counselor shall provide the defendant[s] a Certification of Participation and assist the defendant[s] in serving the Certification on the plaintiff. If the plaintiff does not receive a Certification of Participation within thirty (30) days following service of the complaint and ''Urgent Notice,'' the plaintiff may petition the Court, after notice to the defendant[s], to lift the stay.

 Within forty-five (45) days of the intake meeting, the Housing Counselor shall submit to the plaintiff or the plaintiff's representative a Mortgage Modification Plan or a statement that the Housing Counselor was unable to develop a plan. If no plan is submitted, the plaintiff may immediately petition the Court, after notice to the defendant[s], to lift the stay. If a plan is submitted, the Housing Counselor shall attempt to negotiate a resolution of the default with the plaintiff's representative. If the plaintiff's representative fails to participate in negotiations with the Housing Counselor, the Housing Counselor may assist the defendant[s] in petitioning the Court, after notice to the plaintiff, to extend the stay until negotiations occur. Attachment D, the Request for Extension of Stay Form, should be completed and filed in the Prothonotary's Office.

 If an agreement is reached through negotiations, the plaintiff's representative shall prepare any documents necessary to implement the agreement and withdraw the complaint. If no agreement is reached through negotiations, the Housing Counselor shall complete the Request for a Court Supervised Conciliation Conference (Attachment E) and forward it to the Court Administrator. The defendant[s] shall indicate on the Request if the assistance of a Schuylkill County pro bono Attorney to serve as a neutral facilitator at the Conciliation Conference is being requested.

 The primary role of the pro bono Attorney will be to facilitate the negotiations at the Conciliation Conference between the Housing Counselor, the defendant[s], and plaintiff's representative. The pro bono Attorney shall not be required to file an entry of appearance and the Conciliation Conference is the only proceeding that he/she is required to attend. Once a pro bono Attorney has agreed to participate and assist the defendant[s] at the Conciliation Conference, the Mortgage Modification Plan will be immediately provided to that Attorney.

 VI. At the conclusion of the Conciliation Conference, the Court may order that the stay be lifted, that the stay be continued for a reasonable time to allow for further voluntary negotiations and/or the preparation and execution of documents to implement any agreement or any other action the Court deems appropriate.

WILLIAM E. BALDWIN 
President Judge

Attachment A

IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
CIVIL DIVISION

_________________________________________________

	)
Plaintiff	)	No.
	)
v.	)
	)
Defendant	)
	)

_________________________________________________

MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE DIVERSION PROGRAM
CERTIFICATION
COVER SHEET
STATUS OF FORECLOSED PREMISES AS
RESIDENTIAL AND OWNER OCCUPIED

 Pursuant to the Administrative Order dated ______ ,
2011, issued by the Honorable William E. Baldwin, P.J., I hereby certify that the premises at issue in this action is:

Premises Address: ______________________________
 __________________________ , PA _____________

OCCUPANCY STATUS:

 [  ] is an owner occupied residential premises exposed to judicial sale to enforce a residential mortgage;

 [  ] is not a residential premises within the meaning of the aforementioned order;

 [  ] is not owner occupied as of this date;

 [  ] is not exposed to judicial sale to enforce a residential mortgage;

 [  ] vacant.

 The undersigned verifies that the statements made herein are true and correct. I understand that false statements are made subject to the penalties of 18 Pa.C.S. § 4904. relating to unsworn falsification to authorities.

Date: ________  ____________________________
        Signature of Plaintiff or
        Counsel for Plaintiff
______________________
(Print Name)
______________________
(Address of Counsel or Plaintiff)
______________________
 

______________________
(Phone Number)

Attachment B

''URGENT NOTICE''

SCHUYLKILL COUNTY COURT OF COMMON PEAS

RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE

DIVERSION PROGRAM

 You have been served with a foreclosure complaint that could cause you to lose your home.

 If you own and live in the residential property which is the subject of this foreclosure action, you may be able to participate in court-supervised conciliation conference in an effort to resolve this matter with your lender.

 If you do not have an attorney, you must take the following steps to be eligible for a conciliation conference. First, within seven (20) days of your receipt of this Notice, you must contact a housing counselor to schedule an appointment at:

SCHUYLKILL COMMUNITY ACTION
225 NORTH CENTRE STREET
POTTSVILLE, PA 17901.
570-622-1995

 Second, once you have contacted the housing counselor, you must be promptly meet with that housing counselor within fourteen (20) days of your telephone contact. During that meeting, you must provide the housing counselor with all the requested financial information so that a loan resolution proposal can be prepared on your behalf. If necessary, the housing counselor will help you prepare and file a Request for Conciliation Conference with the Court. If you do so and a conciliation conference is scheduled, you will have an opportunity to meet with a representative of your lender in an attempt to work out reasonable arrangements with your lender before the mortgage foreclosure suit proceeds forward.

IF YOU WISH TO SAVE YOUR HOME, YOU MUST ACT QUICKLY AND TAKE THE APPROPRIATE STEPS REQUIRED BY THIS NOTICE. THIS PROGRAM IS COST-FREE.

Attachment C

IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
CIVIL DIVISION

_________________________________________________

	)
Plaintiff	)	No.
	)
v.	)
	)
Defendant	)
	)

_________________________________________________

MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE DIVERSION
CERTIFICATION OF PARTICIPATION

 (Defendant must file in the Prothonotary's Office and copy must be sent to Plaintiff's Attorney)

 I represent that I am the owner of the property listed below, which is my primary residence, and certify that as required by the Schuylkill County Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program, I have met with the housing counselor identified below and provided all financial and employment information. It is my understanding that within thirty (30) days after the Intake Meeting, the Housing Counselor will forward the Mortgage Modification Plan to the mortgagee.

Premises Address: ______________________________
 __________________________ , PA _____________

_________________________________________
(Name of Housing Counselor—Agency)

Date of Intake: __________

I verify that the statements made herein are true and correct. I understand that false statements are made subject to penalties of 18 Pa.C.S. § 4904 relating to unsworn falsification to authorities.

Date: ______  ______________________________
        Signature of Defendant

Attachment D

IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF SCHUYLKILL COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
CIVIL DIVISION

_________________________________________________

	)
Plaintiff	)	No.
	)
v.	)
	)
Defendant	)
	)

_________________________________________________

MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE DIVERSION PROGRAM
REQUEST FOR EXTENSION OF STAY

 This Request for Extension of Stay must be filed in the Prothonotary's Office and a copy must be sent to Plaintiff.

 I, _________________ , represent that I am the owner of the property listed below, my primary residence, and which is the subject of a mortgage foreclosure action. As the defendant in this matter, I am requesting an extension of the ninety (90) days stay from the date of service of the complaint which was ______ be granted until the negotiations required by Paragraph V of the Schuylkill County Mortgage Foreclosure Diversion Program have been held.

The reason(s) for the extension are:

________________________________________ 
________________________________________ 
________________________________________ 
________________________________________ 
________________________________________ 
________________________________________

Premises Address: ______________________________
 __________________________ , PA _____________

Housing Counselor's Name: __________

Date of Intake Meeting: __________

_________________  ______
Defendant's Signature    Date

Attachment E

IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF SCHUYLKUILL COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
CIVIL DIVISION

_________________________________________________

	)
Plaintiff	)	No.
	)
v.	)
	)
Defendant	)
	)

_________________________________________________

REQUEST FOR COURT SUPERVISED CONCILIATION CONFERENCE

 As the Defendant in this matter, I am requesting that a Court Supervised Conciliation Conference be scheduled.

 I am OR am not requesting the assistance of a pro bono Attorney to serve as a neutral facilitator at the Conciliation Conference.

___________________________
Defendant's Signature        

___________________________
Housing Counselor's Signature    

Lois A. Wallauer
Court Administrator
Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas
401 N. Second Street
Pottsville, PA 17901

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 14-667. Filed for public inspection March 28, 2014, 9:00 a.m.]

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