THE COURTS

Title 231—RULES OF
CIVIL PROCEDURE

PART I. GENERAL

[ 231 PA. CODE CH. 200 ]

Order Amending Rule 211 of the Rules of Civil Procedure; No. 632 Civil Procedural Rules Doc.

[45 Pa.B. 6480]
[Saturday, November 7, 2015]

Order

Per Curiam

 And Now, this 26th day of October, 2015, upon the recommendation of the Civil Procedural Rules Committee; the proposal having been published for public comment at 44 Pa.B. 324 (January 18, 2014):

 It Is Ordered pursuant to Article V, Section 10 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania that Rule 211 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure is amended in the following form.

 This Order shall be processed in accordance with Pa.R.J.A. No. 103(b), and shall be effective January 1, 2016.

Annex A

TITLE 231. RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

PART I. GENERAL

CHAPTER 200. BUSINESS OF COURTS

Rule 211. Oral Arguments.

 [Any party or the party's attorney shall have the right to argue any motion and the court shall have the right to require oral argument. With the approval of the court oral argument may be dispensed with by agreement of the attorneys and the matter submitted to the court either on the papers filed of record, or on such briefs as may be filed by the parties. The person seeking the order applied for shall argue first and may also argue in reply, but such reply shall be limited to answering arguments advanced by the respondent. In matters where there may be more than one respondent, the order of argument by the respondents shall be as directed by the court.]

 Any interested party may request oral argument on a motion. The court may require oral argument, whether or not requested by a party. The court may dispose of any motion without oral argument.

EXPLANATORY COMMENT

 Current Rule 211, if read literally, confers on a party the right to argue any motion before the trial court. However, the Superior Court and the Commonwealth Court have both held that any right to oral argument conferred by Rule 211 is only a qualified right subject to judicial discretion. See Gerace v. Holmes Protection of Philadelphia, 516 A.2d 354 (Pa. Super. 1986); City of Philadelphia v. Kenny, 369 A.2d 1343 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1977). To remedy any confusion between the text of the rule and actual practice supported by appellate precedent, Rule 211 has been amended to provide that a party has the right to request oral argument, and gives discretion to the trial court to require oral argument, whether requested or not, or to dispose of any motion without oral argument.

By the Civil Procedural
Rules Committee

PETER J. HOFFMAN, 
Chair

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 15-1958. Filed for public inspection November 6, 2015, 9:00 a.m.]

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