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PA Bulletin, Doc. No. 21-2046

THE COURTS

Title 210—APPELLATE PROCEDURE

PART I. RULES OF APPELLATE PROCEDURE

[ 210 PA. CODE CHS. 1 AND 19 ]

Order Amending Rules 127 and 1931 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure; No. 297 Appellate Procedural Rules Doc.

[51 Pa.B. 7618]
[Saturday, December 11, 2021]

Order

Per Curiam

 And Now, this 1st day of December, 2021, upon the recommendation of the Appellate Court Procedural Rules Committee; the proposal having been submitted without publication pursuant to Pa.R.J.A. 103(a):

 It is Ordered pursuant to Article V, Section 10 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania that Rules 127 and 1931 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure are amended in the following form.

 This Order shall be processed in accordance with Pa.R.J.A. 103(b), and shall be effective January 1, 2022.

Annex A

TITLE 210. APPELLATE PROCEDURE

PART I. RULES OF APPELLATE PROCEDURE

ARTICLE I. PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS

DOCUMENTS GENERALLY

Rule 127. Confidential Information and Confidential Documents. Certification.

 (a) Unless public access is otherwise constrained by applicable authority, any attorney or any unrepresented party who files a document pursuant to these rules shall comply with the requirements of Sections 7.0 and 8.0 of the Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania (''Public Access Policy''). In accordance with the Policy, the filing shall include a certification of compliance with the Policy and, as necessary, a Confidential Information Form[, unless otherwise specified by rule or order of court,] or a Confidential Document Form.

 (b) Unless an appellate court orders otherwise, case records or documents that are sealed by a court, government unit, or other tribunal shall remain sealed on appeal.

 [Official Note] Comment: Paragraph (a)—''Applicable authority'' includes but is not limited to statute, procedural rule, or court order. The Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania (''Public Access Policy'') can be found at [http://www.pacourts.us/public-records] https://www.pacourts.us/public-records. Sections 7.0(D) and 8.0(D) of the Public Access Policy provide that the certification shall be in substantially the following form:

 I certify that this filing complies with the provisions of the Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania that require filing confidential information and documents differently than non-confidential information and documents.

 Appropriate forms can be found at [http://www.pacourts.us/public-records. Pursuant to Section 7.0(C) of the Policy, a court may adopt a rule or order that permits, in lieu of a Confidential Information Form, the filing of a document in two versions, that is, a ''Redacted Version'' and an ''Unredacted Version.''] https://www.pacourts.us/public-records. For certification of the Reproduced Record and Supplemental Reproduced Record in compliance with the Public Access Policy, see Pa.R.A.P. 2152, 2156, 2171, and accompanying notes.

 Paragraph (b)—Once a document is sealed, it shall remain sealed on appeal unless the appellate court orders, either sua sponte or on application, that the case record or document be opened.

ARTICLE II. APPELLATE PROCEDURE

CHAPTER 19. PREPARATION AND TRANSMISSION OF RECORD AND
RELATED MATTERS

RECORD ON APPEAL FROM LOWER COURT

Rule 1931. Transmission of the Record.

 (a) Time for [transmission] Transmission.

 (1) General [rule] Rule. Except as otherwise prescribed by this rule or if an extension has been granted pursuant to Pa.R.A.P. 1925(b)(2), the record on appeal, including the transcript and exhibits necessary for the determination of the appeal, shall be transmitted to the appellate court within 60 days after the filing of the notice of appeal. If an appeal has been allowed or if permission to appeal has been granted, the record shall be transmitted as provided by Pa.R.A.P. 1122 or by Pa.R.A.P. 1322, as the case may be. The appellate court may shorten or extend the time prescribed by this subparagraph for a class or classes of cases.

 (2) Children's [fast track appeals] Fast Track Appeals. In a children's fast track appeal, the record on appeal, including the transcript and exhibits necessary for the determination of the appeal, shall be transmitted to the appellate court within 30 days after the filing of the notice of appeal. If an appeal has been allowed or if permission to appeal has been granted, the record shall be transmitted as provided by Pa.R.A.P. 1122 or by Pa.R.A.P. 1322, as the case may be.

 (b) Duty of [trial court] Trial Court. After a notice of appeal has been filed, the judge who entered the order appealed from shall comply with Pa.R.A.P. 1925, shall cause the official court reporter to comply with Pa.R.A.P. 1922 or shall otherwise settle a statement of the evidence or proceedings as prescribed by this chapter, and shall take any other action necessary to enable the clerk to assemble and transmit the record as prescribed by this rule.

 (c) Duty of [clerk to transmit the record] Clerk to Transmit the Record. When the record is complete for purposes of the appeal, the clerk of the trial court shall transmit it to the prothonotary of the appellate court. The clerk of the trial court shall number the documents comprising the record and shall transmit with the record a list of the documents correspondingly numbered and identified with sufficient specificity to allow the parties on appeal to identify each document and whether it is marked as confidential, so as to determine whether the record on appeal is complete. Any Confidential Information Forms [and the ''Unredacted Version'' of any pleadings, documents, or other legal papers where a ''Redacted Version'' was also filed] shall be separated either physically or electronically and transmitted to the appellate court. Whatever is confidential shall be labeled as such. If any case records or documents were sealed in the lower court, the list of documents comprising the record shall specifically identify such records or documents as having been sealed in the lower court. Documents of unusual bulk or weight and physical exhibits other than documents shall not be transmitted by the clerk unless he or she is directed to do so by a party or by the prothonotary of the appellate court. A party must make advance arrangements with the clerk for the transportation and receipt of exhibits of unusual bulk or weight. Transmission of the record is effected when the clerk of the trial court mails or otherwise forwards the record to the prothonotary of the appellate court. The clerk of the trial court shall indicate, by endorsement on the face of the record or otherwise, the date upon which the record is transmitted to the appellate court.

 (d) Service of the [list of record documents] List of Record Documents. The clerk of the trial court shall, at the time of the transmittal of the record to the appellate court, mail a copy of the list of record documents to all counsel of record, or if unrepresented by counsel, to the parties at the address they have provided to the clerk. The clerk shall note on the docket the giving of such notice.

 (e) Multiple [appeals] Appeals. Where more than one appeal is taken from the same order, it shall be sufficient to transmit a single record, without duplication.

 (f) Inconsistency [between list of record documents and documents actually transmitted] Between List of Record Documents and Documents Actually Transmitted. If the clerk of the trial court fails to transmit to the appellate court all of the documents identified in the list of record documents, such failure shall be deemed a breakdown in processes of the court. Any omission shall be corrected promptly pursuant to Pa.R.A.P. 1926 and shall not be the basis for any penalty against a party.

 [Official Note] Comment: Pa.R.A.P. 1926 provides the means to resolve any disagreement between the parties as to what should be included in the record on appeal.

 Paragraph (c)—On January 1, 2022, the Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System was amended to require the filing of the Confidential Information Form and eliminate the filing of ''Redacted Versions'' and ''Unredacted Versions'' of pleadings, documents, or other legal papers. Section 9.0(H) of the amended Policy continues to protect ''Unredacted Versions'' that were filed under the prior version of the Policy. For any ''Unredacted Version,'' the clerk of the trial court should continue to comply with the requirements of paragraph (c) when transmitting the record to the appellate court.

ADOPTION REPORT

Amendment of Pa.R.A.P. 127 and 1931

 On December 1, 2021, the Supreme Court amended Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure 127 and 1931 to conform the rules to recent amendments to the Case Records Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania adopted on October 6, 2021. The Appellate Court Procedural Rules Committee has prepared this Adoption Report describing the rulemaking process. An Adoption Report should not be confused with Comments to the rules. See Pa.R.J.A. 103, Comment. The statements contained herein are those of the Committee, not the Court.

 Effective January 1, 2022, the amendments to Section 7.0(A) and (C) of the Policy require filers to safeguard confidential information using a Confidential Information Form. Prior to the amendments, the Policy provided an option for a court to adopt a rule or order to permit the filing of a document in two versions, a ''Redacted Version'' and an ''Unredacted Version'' rather than require the use of the Confidential Information Form. In addition, Section 9.0(H) has been added to indicate that the amendments to the Policy do not apply retroactively to documents filed with a court prior to their effective date.

 Pa.R.A.P. 127 governs confidential information and confidential documents in appellate filings, including the certification that a filing is compliant with the Policy; Pa.R.A.P. 1931 governs transmission of the record. Conforming amendments have been made to delete references within the rule and comment relating to the option for a court to require redacted and unredacted versions of a document when safeguarding confidential information.

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 21-2046. Filed for public inspection December 10, 2021, 9:00 a.m.]


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