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PA Bulletin, Doc. No. 20-204

THE COURTS

Title 255—LOCAL COURT RULES

LUZERNE COUNTY

Order Amending Local Rule of Civil Procedure 1920.51; No. CP-40-CV-00951-2020; Administration Fee for Appointment of Master in Divorce

[50 Pa.B. 912]
[Saturday, February 15, 2020]

Order

 And Now, this 21st day of January, 2020, it is hereby Ordered and Decreed as follows:

 1. The Court of Common Pleas of Luzerne County, constitutionally the Eleventh Judicial District of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania amends Luzerne County Local Rule of Civil Procedure (L.R.Civ.P.) 1920.51 which follows hereto and incorporated herein by reference.

 2. It is further Ordered and Decreed that the Court Administrator shall file via U.S. Mail one (1) certified copy of this Rule with the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts, two (2) certified copies and an electronic document via e-mail saved in Microsoft Word format to the Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin, one (1) certified copy to the Civil Procedural Rules Committee, one (1) certified copy to the Judicial Council of Pennsylvania Statewide Rules Committee, and one (1) copy to the Luzerne Legal Register for publication in the next issue.

 3. It is further Ordered that the effective date of this order shall be thirty (30) days after the date of publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

 4. It is further Ordered that these local rules shall be kept continuously available for public inspection and copying in the Office of Judicial Services and Records of Luzerne County.

 Compliance Herewith is Directed.

By the Court

MICHAEL T. VOUGH, 
President Judge

L.R.CIV.P. 1920.51. Administrative Fee for Appointment of Master in Divorce.

 1. Simultaneously with the filing of a Motion for Appointment of a Master in Divorce, an administrative fee of Four Hundred ($400.00) Dollars shall be paid to the Office of Judicial Services and Records (Prothonotary) by the moving party. Within twenty (20) days of service of the Motion for Appointment of a Master in Divorce, the responding party shall pay an administrative fee of Four Hundred ($400.00) Dollars to the Office of Judicial Services and Records (Prothonotary).

 2. The Master in Divorce may allocate the administrative fees charged herein as part of the recommendations of the Master's Report between the parties as may be fair and equitable by giving credit/deduction to the fees as part of the equitable distribution of martial property.

 3. In the event a party fails to pay the required fee, that party shall be subject to the contempt powers of the Court and the payment of any additional expenses and costs, including attorney fees of the opposing party necessary for the enforcement of this requirement within the discretion of the Court.

 4. In the event one party pays both administrative fees, he or she shall be awarded a Four Hundred ($400.00) Dollar credit as part of the final equitable distribution of marital property.

 5. In the event that a party is indigent, and unable to pay the administrative fee, he or she may petition the Court for in forma pauperis (IFP) status to waive the fee pursuant to Pa.R.C.P. 240. If the party is represented by an attorney, that attorney shall file a certification that he or she is providing free legal services to that party as part of the IFP petition. If one party is indigent, the Court may allocate both fees to the non-indigent party. If both parties are indigent, neither party shall be responsible for the fee.

 6. No other administrative fees shall be charged due to the appointment of a Master in Divorce.

 7. Luzerne County Local Rule of Civil Procedure 1920.51 shall be effective thirty (30) days after the date of publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 20-204. Filed for public inspection February 14, 2020, 9:00 a.m.]


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