THE COURTS
PART I. GENERAL
[ 231 PA. CODE CH. 1920 ]
Proposed Amendment of Pa.R.C.P. No. 1920.33
[45 Pa.B. 6975]
[Saturday, December 12, 2015]The Domestic Relations Procedural Rules Committee is planning to propose to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania an amendment of Pa.R.C.P. No. 1920.33 governing joinder of related claims in divorce actions for the reasons set forth in the accompanying publication report. Pursuant to Pa.R.J.A. No. 103(a)(1), the proposal is being published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin for comments, suggestions, or objections prior to submission to the Supreme Court.
Any reports, notes, or comments in the proposal have been inserted by the Committee for the convenience of those using the rules. They neither will constitute a part of the rules nor will be officially adopted by the Supreme Court.
Additions to the text of the proposal are bolded; deletions to the text are bolded and bracketed.
The Committee invites all interested persons to submit comments, suggestions, or objections in writing to:
Bruce J. Ferguson, Counsel
Domestic Relations Procedural Rules Committee
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Judicial Center
PO Box 62635
Harrisburg, PA 17106-2635
Fax: 717-231-9531
domesticrules@pacourts.usAll communications in reference to the proposal should be received by February 26, 2016. E-mail is the preferred method for submitting comments, suggestions, or objections; any e-mailed submission need not be reproduced and resubmitted via mail. The Committee will acknowledge receipt of all submissions.
By the Domestic Relations
Procedural Rules CommitteeDAVID J. SLESNICK, Esq.,
Chair
Annex A
TITLE 231. RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE
PART I. GENERAL
CHAPTER 1920. ACTIONS OF DIVORCE OR FOR ANNULMENT OF MARRIAGE Rule 1920.33. Joinder of Related Claims. [Distribution of Property.] Equitable Division. Enforcement.
(a) [Each party shall file an inventory specifically describing all property owned or possessed at the date of separation.] If a pleading or petition raises a claim for equitable division of marital property under Section 3502 of the Divorce Code, the parties shall file and serve on the other party an inventory, which shall include the information in subdivisions (1) through (3) and shall be substantially in the form set forth in Pa.R.C.P. No. 1920.75. Within 20 days of service of the moving party's inventory, the non-moving party shall file an inventory. A party may not file a motion for the appointment of a master or a request for court action regarding equitable [distribution] division until at least 30 days following the filing of that party's inventory. [The other party shall file the inventory within 20 days of service of the moving party's inventory.
The inventory shall set forth as of the date of separation:
(1) [a specific description of all marital property in which either or both have a legal or equitable interest individually or with any other person and the name of such other person and all marital liabilities;] a specific description of the marital assets, which either or both parties have a legal or equitable interest, individually or jointly with another person, the name of the co-owners, if applicable, and the marital liabilities, which either party incurred individually or jointly with another person, and the name of any co-debtors, if applicable;
(2) a specific description of [all property or liabilities that are] the assets or liabilities claimed to be non-marital and the basis for such claim; and
(3) the estimated value of [each item of] the marital and non-marital [property] assets and the amount of each marital and non-marital liability.
Official Note: Subdivision (c) [of this rule] provides for sanctions for failure to file an inventory as required by [this] subdivision (a). An inventory may be incomplete [where the party filing it does not know of all of the property] if a party lacks a comprehensive knowledge of the assets and liabilities involved in the claim for equitable [distribution] division. Consequently, the rule does not contemplate that a party will be precluded from presenting testimony or offering evidence as to [property] assets or liabilities omitted from the inventory. The omission may be [supplied by] remedied by inclusion of the omitted information in the pre-trial statement required by subdivision (b).
(b) Within the time required by order of court or written directive of the master or, if none, at least [sixty] 60 days before the scheduled hearing on the claim for [the determination and distribution of property, each party] equitable division, the parties shall file and serve upon the other party a pre-trial statement. The pre-trial statement shall include the following matters, together with any additional information required by special order of the court:
(1) a list of assets, which may be in chart form, specifying:
[(i) the marital assets, their value, the date of the valuation, whether any portion of the value is non-marital, and any liens or encumbrances thereon; and
(ii) the non-marital assets, their value, the date of the valuation, and any liens or encumbrances thereon;]
(i) The marital assets:
a. the value;
b. the date of the valuation;
c. the value of any non-marital portion;
d. the facts and documentation upon which the party relies to support the valuation; and
e. any liens or encumbrances associated with the asset.
(ii) The non-marital assets:
a. the value;
b. the date of the valuation;
c. the facts and documentation upon which the party relies to support the valuation; and
d. any liens or encumbrances associated with the asset.
(2) the name and address of [each expert] the expert witnesses whom the party intends to call at trial [as a witness]. A report of each expert witness listed shall be attached to the pre-trial statement. The report shall describe the [witness's] expert's qualifications and experience [and], state the substance of the facts and opinions to which the expert is expected to testify and [a summary of] summarize the grounds for each opinion;
(3) the name, address and a short summary of the testimony of [each person] the witnesses, other than the party, whom the party intends to call at trial [as a witness];
(4) [a list of all of the exhibits which the party expects to offer in evidence, each containing an identifying mark. Any exhibits that do not exceed three pages shall be attached to the pre-trial statement, and any exhibits which exceed three pages shall be described;] a list of exhibits that the party expects to offer in evidence. Exhibits not exceeding three pages shall be attached to the pre-trial statement and shall have an identifying exhibit number affixed to or incorporated into the document, and exhibits exceeding three pages shall be described specifically and shall have an exhibit number in its description;
(5) the party's gross income from all sources, [each payroll deduction, and the party's net income, including] payroll deductions, net income, and the party's most recent state and federal income tax returns and pay stubs;
(6) if the party intends to offer [any] testimony as to his or her expenses, an Expense Statement in the form required by [Rule] Pa.R.C.P. No. 1910.27(c)(2)(B);
[(7) the value of a pension or retirement benefits, the marital portion thereof, and the facts and documentation upon which the party relies to support the valuation;
(8)] (7) if there is a claim for counsel fees, the amount of fees to be charged, the basis for the charge, and a detailed itemization of the services rendered;
[(9) where there is a dispute,] (8) the description and value of [any items of] disputed tangible personal property, specifically the personalty contemplated by Pa.R.C.P. No. 1920.75(25), the method of evaluating each item, and the evidence, including documentation, to be offered in support of the valuation;
[(10) a list of marital debts including the amount of each debt as of the date of separation, the date on which the debt was initially incurred, the initial amount of the debt and its purpose, the amounts and dates of payments made since the date of separation, and the evidence that will be offered in support of the claim;]
(9) a list of liabilities, which may be in chart form, specifying:
(i) The marital liabilities:
a. amount of the liability;
b. date of the valuation;
c. amount of any non-marital portion;
d. the facts and documentation upon which the party relies to support the valuation; and
e. amount, if any, of payments made on the liabilities after the date of separation.
(ii) The non-marital liabilities:
a. amount of the liability;
b. date of the valuation; and
c. the facts and documentation upon which the party relies to support the valuation.
[(11)] (10) a proposed resolution of the economic issues raised in the pleadings.
(c) If a party fails to file either an inventory, as required by subdivision (a), or a pre-trial statement, as required by subdivision (b), the court may make an appropriate order under [Rule] Pa.R.C.P. No. 4019(c) governing sanctions.
(d)(1) [A] Except upon good cause shown, a party who fails to comply with a requirement of subdivision (b) [of this rule shall, except upon good cause shown,] shall be barred from offering [any] testimony or introducing [any] evidence in support of or in opposition to claims for the matters [not covered therein] omitted.
(2) [A party shall, except upon good cause shown,] Except upon good cause shown, a party shall be barred from offering [any] testimony or introducing [any] evidence that is inconsistent with or [which] goes beyond the fair scope of the information set forth in the pre-trial statement.
(e) An order [distributing property under] entered by the court pursuant to Section 3502 of the Divorce Code may be enforced as provided by the rules governing actions for support and divorce[,] and in the Divorce Code.
Explanatory Comment—1994 23 Pa.C.S. § 3105(a) states that an agreement is enforceable by any means available pursuant to the Divorce Code for enforcement on an order, as though the agreement were an order of court, except as otherwise provided in the agreement. Thus, although Rule 1920.33 refers only to enforcement of orders, it also applies to enforcement of agreements.
PUBLICATION REPORT The Committee is proposing an amendment of Pa.R.C.P. No. 1920.33. After a recent amendment to the rule, which eliminated the time frame to file an inventory in divorce cases raising equitable division of marital property, it was reported to the Committee that the current reading of the rule requires the parties to file an inventory in every divorce case regardless of whether equitable division had been raised in the pleadings. This result was an unintended consequence of the previous amendment.
As has been the case prior to the last amendment, the proposed language clarifies the rule to only require the filing of an inventory in divorce cases when a claim for equitable division has been raised in the pleadings by the parties. The language revision only conforms the rule, in part, to the past practice.
Other changes to the rule include revisions for easier readability, format changes, and deleting redundancy. Subdivision (b)(7) has been eliminated from the list of items included in pre-trial statements. The subdivision set forth a requirement of identifying the parties' pension and retirement benefits in the pre-trial statement as a separate item. Although the line item has been eliminated from the enumerated list, pensions and retirement benefits are assets and, as such, should be included under subdivision (b)(1).
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 15-2168. Filed for public inspection December 11, 2015, 9:00 a.m.]
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