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PA Bulletin, Doc. No. 22-1204

THE COURTS

Title 252—ALLEGHENY
COUNTY RULES

ALLEGHENY COUNTY

Civil Division Local Rules of the Court of Common Pleas; No. AD-2022-251-PJ Rules Docket

[52 Pa.B. 4919]
[Saturday, August 13, 2022]

Order of Court

 And Now, this 3rd day of August, 2022, it is hereby Ordered that the following Allegheny County Civil Division Local Rules, adopted by the Board of Judges on June 10, 2022, shall be effective thirty (30) days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

Local Rule 212.1 Pre-Trial Procedure for All Actions in the Civil Division of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County. Notice of Earliest Trial Date. Time for Completing Discovery and Filing Pre-trial Statement
Local Rule 212.7 Mandatory Mediation
Local Rule 1303 Arbitration Hearing. Notice.

 It is further Ordered that Local Rule 1901 is rescinded in its entirety.

By the Court

KIM BERKELEY CLARK, 
President Judge

 Additions to the rules are shown in bold and are underlined.

 Deletions from the rules are shown in bold and are bracketed.

Local Rule 212.1. Pre-Trial Procedure for All Actions in the Civil Division of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County. Notice of Earliest Trial Date. Time for Completing Discovery and Filing Pre-Trial Statement.

 (1) Pa.R.C.P. 212.1 through 212.3 and Local Rules 212.1 through 212.3 apply to all civil actions, both jury and non-jury, to be tried in the Civil Division; appeals from Compulsory Arbitration shall be exempt unless such cases include a demand for a jury trial, and under such circumstances parties involved in such a case must comply with Local Rules 212.1 through 212.3.

 (2) Definitions. In these rules, the following words shall have the following meanings:

 (a) ''pre-trial conference''—a conference scheduled by the Court in accordance with Pa.R.C.P. 212.3 in which, in addition to matters set forth in Pa.R.C.P. 212.3, the Court shall:

 (i) determine whether the parties have complied with this local rule; and

 (ii) attempt an amicable settlement of the case.

 (b) ''Conciliating Judge''—the Judge assigned to conduct the pre-trial conference.

 (3) Notice of Earliest Trial Date. Time for Completing Discovery and Filing Pre-Trial Statement. Notices required by Pa.R.C.P. 212.1 shall be given by publication in the Pittsburgh Legal Journal, and notice shall be provided to unrepresented parties and to those out-of-county counsel identified in paragraph 6 of the Praecipe to Place the Case at Issue (see FORM 214w).

 Note: As soon as there is a published trial list, trial dates appear as docket entries in each individual case on the trial list. Docket entries are available online at: https://dcr.alleghenycounty.us/ and click on Civil/Family Division, then ''Case Search'' (in upper right corner) and enter the docket number. Additionally, published trial lists are also available on the Civil Division's website at: www.alleghenycourts.us.

 Trial lists are generally published in the Pittsburgh Legal Journal 6 months prior to commencement of the trial term. Pre-trial deadlines are generally as follows: 16 weeks prior to commencement of the trial term for the close of discovery; 14 weeks prior to commencement of the trial term for plaintiffs' pre-trial statements; 12 weeks prior to commencement of the trial term for all other parties' pre-trial statements; and 45 days prior to the commencement of the trial term for completion of mediation pursuant to Local Rule 212.7. The general schedule set forth in this Note is only advisory and may vary from the controlling dates and deadlines published in the Pittsburgh Legal Journal.

Local Rule 212.7. Mandatory Mediation.

 (1) All parties shall participate in a formal mediation process no later than 45 days prior to commencement of the assigned trial term, as published in the Pittsburgh Legal Journal pursuant to Local Rule 212.1(3). This requirement shall apply unless:

 (a) The Calendar Control Judge excuses the case from mediation upon motion and good cause shown; or

 Note: At the discretion of the Calendar Control Judge, ''good cause'' may include, but is not limited to, the expense of mediation relative to a party's perceived valuation of the case, as well as a party's inability to afford the expense of mediation.

 (b) All parties agree to waive mediation and file a Certification pursuant to Section (3)(a)(iii) of this rule.

 Note: The mediation requirement set forth herein may be satisfied at any time prior to 45 days before commencement of the assigned trial term. This is intended to provide the parties with maximum flexibility in determining when mediation would be most effective.

 (2) Except by agreement of all parties, all parties with a financial interest and all non-parties with a financial interest (such as insurers) shall attend mediation with full authority to settle the case. Parties without a financial interest need not attend.

 (3) Certification.

 (a) Within 7 days of completing mediation or agreeing to waive mediation pursuant to Section (1)(b) of this rule, the plaintiff shall file a Certification indicating that:

 (i) The case was mediated and all claims have been or soon will be resolved;

 (ii) The case was mediated, but all or some claims remain pending for trial; or

 (iii) The parties have agreed in writing to waive mediation.

 (b) Upon filing of the Certification required by this rule, the plaintiff shall serve a copy of the Certification upon the Calendar Control section of the Civil Division via electronic mail to CivilCalendarControl@alleghenycourts.us. Should the plaintiff fail to timely serve a Certification, any other party may do so.

 (c) If the Calendar Control Judge excuses a case from mediation under Section (1)(a) of this rule, the moving party shall within 7 days serve a copy of the Order of Court upon the Calendar Control section of the Civil Division via electronic mail to CivilCalendarControl@alleghenycourts.us.

 (4) The Calendar Control Judge may, upon motion, impose such sanctions as are deemed appropriate against counsel and/or the parties for failure to comply with this rule in good faith.

 (5) This rule does not apply to arbitration appeals, asbestos cases, or landlord-tenant cases.

Local Rule 1303. Arbitration Hearing. Notice.

 (1) The Department of Court Records shall assign the date, time and place of hearing before a Board of Arbitrators as follows:

 (a) for complaints filed by presenting to the Department of Court Records, placing said information on the Complaint which is filed and on the copies of the Complaint which are to be served upon all other parties, and

 (b) for Complaints filed through the electronic filing system, the Department of Court Records shall give notice to the filing party of the date, time and place of hearing before a Board of Arbitrators through the electronic filing system.

 (c) The filing party shall notify the parties to be served with copies of the Complaint of the date, time and place of hearing before a Board of Arbitrators; which notice shall be served with the copy of the Complaint.

 (2) Every Complaint (except for Small Claims—see Local Rule 1320(2)) filed in Compulsory Arbitration, whether filed by a plaintiff against a defendant or by a defendant against an additional defendant, shall contain a Notice of Hearing Date, Notice to Defend and Notice of Duty to Appear at Arbitration Hearing (FORM 1303) (see subsection (4) below). The Notice of Hearing Date and Notice of Duty to Appear shall immediately follow the Notice (to Defend) which is required by Pa.R.C.P. 1018.1(b).

 (3) Immediately before the time set for hearing, an Arbitration Clerk shall assign cases to each Board of Arbitrators and shall designate the room in which the cases are to be heard. An Arbitration Clerk shall designate the order in which cases shall be heard from those listed in the published daily Arbitration List, in addition to cases listed specially by a Judge.


FORM 1303 Notice of Hearing Date, Notice to Defend and Notice of Duty to Appear at Arbitration Hearing

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

 ARBITRATION DOCKET
 NO. __________
Plaintiff,    
   vs. HEARING DATE __________

                    Defendant,

NOTICE TO DEFEND

 YOU HAVE BEEN SUED IN COURT. If you wish to defend against the claims set forth in the [attached copy of the suit papers] following pages, YOU MUST [complete and detach two of the copies of the attached ''Notice of Intention to Appear.'' One completed copy of the ''Notice of Intention to Appear'' must be filed or mailed to the Department of Court Records, First Floor, City—County Building, 414 Grant Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15219 and the other completed copy must be mailed to: _____] take action within TWENTY (20) days [from the date these papers were mailed] after this complaint and notice are served, by entering a written appearance personally or by attorney and filing in writing with the court your defenses or objections to the claims set forth against you. You are warned that if you fail to do so, the case may proceed without you and a judgment may be entered against you by the court without further notice for any money claimed in the complaint or for any other claim or relief requested by the plaintiff. You may lose money or property or other rights important to you.

 YOU SHOULD TAKE THIS PAPER TO YOUR LAWYER AT ONCE. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A LAWYER [OR CANNOT AFFORD ONE], GO TO OR TELEPHONE THE OFFICE SET FORTH BELOW. THIS OFFICE CAN PROVIDE YOU WITH INFORMATION ABOUT HIRING A LAWYER.

 [TO FIND OUT WHERE YOU CAN GET LEGAL HELP.] IF YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO HIRE A LAWYER, THIS OFFICE MAY BE ABLE TO PROVIDE YOU WITH INFORMATION ABOUT AGENCIES THAT MAY OFFER LEGAL SERVICES TO ELIGIBLE PERSONS AT A REDUCED FEE OR NO FEE.

LAWYER REFERRAL SERVICE
The Allegheny County Bar Association
400 Koppers Building[,]
436 Seventh Avenue
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15219
Telephone: (412) 261-5555
www.getapittsburghlawyer.com

HEARING NOTICE

 YOU HAVE BEEN SUED IN COURT. The above Notice to Defend explains what you must do to dispute the claims made against you. If you file the written response referred to in the Notice to Defend, a hearing before a board of arbitrators will take place in Courtroom Two, Seventh Floor, City—County Building, 414 Grant Street Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on ______ , _____ at 9:00 A.M. IF YOU FAIL TO FILE THE RESPONSE DESCRIBED IN THE NOTICE TO DEFEND, A JUDGMENT FOR THE AMOUNT CLAIMED IN THE COMPLAINT MAY BE ENTERED AGAINST YOU BEFORE THE HEARING.

DUTY TO APPEAR AT ARBITRATION HEARING

 If one or more of the parties is not present at the hearing, THE MATTER MAY BE HEARD AT THE SAME TIME AND DATE BEFORE A JUDGE OF THE COURT WITHOUT THE ABSENT PARTY OR PARTIES. THERE IS NO RIGHT TO A TRIAL DE NOVO ON APPEAL FROM A DECISION ENTERED BY A JUDGE.

 NOTICE: YOU MUST RESPOND TO THIS COMPLAINT WITHIN TWENTY (20) DAYS OR A JUDGMENT FOR THE AMOUNT CLAIMED MAY BE ENTERED AGAINST YOU BEFORE THE HEARING. IF ONE OR MORE OF THE PARTIES IS NOT PRESENT AT THE HEARING, THE MATTER MAY BE HEARD IMMEDIATELY BEFORE A JUDGE WITHOUT THE ABSENT PARTY OR PARTIES. THERE IS NO RIGHT TO A TRIAL DE NOVO ON APPEAL FROM A DECISION ENTERED BY A JUDGE.

 Editor's Note: Adopted October 4, 2006, effective December 4, 2006. Amended December 27, 2019, effective February 19, 2020.

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 22-1204. Filed for public inspection August 12, 2022, 9:00 a.m.]


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