THE COURTS
Title 255—LOCAL COURT RULES
LANCASTER COUNTY
Amendment of Local Rules of Civil Procedure; CI-20-06509
[53 Pa.B. 6040]
[Saturday, September 30, 2023]
Administrative Order And Now, this 19th day of September 2023, it is hereby Ordered that the following Local Rules of Civil Procedure of the Court of Common Pleas of the 2nd Judicial District of Pennsylvania, Lancaster County, are amended/adopted/rescinded as indicated, to be effective thirty (30) days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
The Lancaster County District Court Administrator is Ordered to do the following:
1. File one (1) copy to the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts via email to adminrules@ pacourts.us.
2. File two (2) paper copies and one (1) electronic copy in a Microsoft Word format only to bulletin@palrb.us with the Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
3. Publish these Rules on the Lancaster County Court website at www.court.co.lancaster.pa.us.
4. Incorporation of the local rule into the set of local rules on www.court.co.lancaster.pa.us within thirty (30) days after the publication of the local rule in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
5. File one (1) copy of the local rule in the appropriate filing office for public inspection and copying.
By the Court
DAVID L. ASHWORTH,
President JudgeRule 205.4. Electronic Filing [and Service] of Legal Papers.
A. ''Electronic [Service'' (e-service)] Filing'' (E-Filing) means the electronic transmission of documents to [a party, attorney or representative] the court under these rules. Electronic [service does not include service of process or summons to gain jurisdiction over persons or property] filing does not include service of any documents.
1. All Civil Actions (including Family Actions) filed in the Court of Common Pleas of Lancaster County may be filed by [electronic filing or eFiling. Also, parties may electronically serve other Advanced File & Serve registered users of the system] E-Filing.
2. Registration. Any person intending to use E-File must register with [File and Serve Express (FileandServeXpress.com)] Teleosoft CountySuite Portal. All use of the CountySuite Portal shall be in accordance with the CountySuite Portal user manual. All registered users shall be individuals, not law firms, agencies, corporations or other groups.
3. Original document. A legal paper filed electronically shall be deemed the original document, but copies of exhibits electronically filed do not constitute the original of the exhibit for evidentiary purposes.
B. Form of Documents Electronically Filed.
1. Format. To the extent practicable it shall be formatted in accordance with the applicable rules governing formatting of paper documents, and in such other and further format as the Court may require from time to time. All electronic filings shall be in PDF format. A document may exceed page limitation rules to a maximum of two (2) additional pages when the additional pages are attributed to the electronic conversion of filing process. The e-File system will automatically convert any filing to [PDF] PDF/A format[, but the original format will be available for downloading. The official record of the court is the PDF version].
2. Title of Documents. The title of each electronically filed document shall include: [(1) Party or parties filing the document; (2) Descriptive title of the document; (3) Party or parties against whom relief, if any, is sought, and (4) Nature of the relief sought (e.g. Defendant ABC Corporation's Motion for Summary Judgment Against Plaintiff Jones).]
a. Descriptive title of the document;
b. Party or parties filing the document;
c. Party or parties against whom relief, if any, is sought; and
d. Nature of the relief sought (e.g. Defendant ABC Corporation's Motion for Summary Judgment Against Plaintiff Jones).
3. Signature.
a. Each electronically filed document shall be deemed to have been signed by the attorney or party represented by an attorney authorizing such filing and shall bear a facsimile or typographical signature of such person, e.g. ''/s/Adam Attorney''. Each document e-Filed by an attorney shall also include the typed name, address, and telephone number of the attorney or unrepresented party filing such document. Attorneys shall include their Pennsylvania bar number. Each electronically filed declaration and affidavit shall be deemed to have been signed by the declarant or affiant if an attorney or party not represented by an attorney has authorized such filing. Documents containing signatures of third-parties (i.e., unopposed motions, affidavits, stipulations, etc.) may also be filed electronically by indicating in the original signatures are maintained by the filing party in paper format.
b. The electronic filing of a legal paper constitutes a certification by the filing party that the original hard copy was properly signed and, where applicable, verified; and a certification as provided by the signature to a legal paper under Pa.R.C.P. [1023(b)] 1023.1(c), the violation of which shall be subject to the sanction provided in Pa.R.C.P. [1023(c)] 1023.1(d). The filing party shall maintain the original hard copy of the document filed for two years after the later of: the disposition of the case; the entry of an order resolving the issue raised by the legal paper; or the disposition by an appellate court of the issue raised by the legal paper. [Any other party at any time may require the filing party to file the original hard copy by filing with the Prothonotary and serving upon the filing party a notice to file the original hard copy with the Prothonotary within fourteen days of the filing of the notice] Any other party at any time may serve upon the filing party a notice to produce for inspection the signed hard copy within fourteen days of the service of the notice. The court upon motion may grant appropriate sanctions for failure to produce the signed hard copy pursuant to the notice.
[4. Filing Related Documents.
a. Pleadings seeking judicial action such as Proposed Orders shall be filed separately.
b. Documents may be filed in electronic form, except that paper copies of any legal paper required by court rule or statute to be in paper form shall also be filed in the form required. In the case of original process filed to commence an action, the filing party shall provide a sufficient number of paper copies of an electronically filed document in order to permit service by the Sheriff.]
C. Public Access to the Docket.
1. [The Prothonotary shall make a Public Access Terminal available to the general public to allow access to the Court's electronic case record in all eFiled cases. Copies made from the Court's electronic case records system shall be printed by the Prothonotary and copying fees will be charged in accordance with the Prothonotary's usual fee schedule] Public Access to the Prothonotary's docket is available on the Internet at www.co. lancaster.pa.us/155/Prothonotary.
2. The Prothonotary shall make a Public Access Terminal available to the general public to allow access to the Court's electronic case record in all E-Filed cases.
D. Filing Fees.
1. [Filing fees will be billed by File and Serve Express using the billing arrangements established through the File and Serve Express registration process] All filing fees and payments shall be made at the time of filing with an authorized credit card through the CountySuite Portal. Authorized cards shall include Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover. Filing fees and payments may not be deposited in advance with the Prothonotary.
2. [Filing fees billed by File and Serve Express shall include Prothonotary's statutory filing fees] Filing fees billed by CountySuite Portal shall include the Prothonotary's statutory filing fees.
3. The Prothonotary is authorized to charge a convenience fee for E-Filing as set forth in the Prothonotary's fee schedule.
E Sealed Documents.
1. Documents intended to be filed under seal shall be designated by the filing party as ''sealed'' in the [e-File system] CountySuite Portal. However, designation of documents as ''sealed'' does not seal the document. The filing party must submit a proper request for sealing documents in addition to making the designation in the CountySuite Portal.
2. The filing details and document title will appear in the e-File system. The document can be viewed only by the Court, the Prothonotary staff, [the filer, and those case participants who received service of that particular document. A party that was not served with the document can see only the document title in the case details, however, that party is not able to open or view the document] and case participants.
F. Time of E-Filing [and eService].
[1. Any document filed electronically by 11:59 p.m. ET shall be considered eFiled with the court once the transmission is successfully completed (''authorized date and time'') as recorded on the File and Serve Express System.
2. Delivery of e-service documents through File and Serve to other registered users shall be considered as valid and effective service and shall have the same legal effect as an original paper document. Recipients of e-service documents shall access their documents through the File and Serve system.
3. For the purpose of computing time to respond to documents received via e-service, any document served on a day or at a time when the court is not open for business shall be deemed served at the time of next opening of the court for business.
4. Parties who register to use File and Serve Express consent to receive e-service documents, other than service of subpoenas or summons.]
1. The CountySuite Portal shall provide to the filer, using the email addressed registered by the filer, a courtesy email acknowledging that the E-filing was received. An official notification will be displayed in the CountySuite Portal, which includes the time and date, as a pending filing awaiting approval by the Prothonotary. The Prothonotary shall provide the filer with notification through the CountySuite Portal that the legal paper has been either accepted or rejected.
2. If a legal paper is accepted, it shall be deemed to have been filed as of the date and time it was received by the CountySuite Portal; however, if a legal paper is submitted without the requisite filing fee, the legal paper shall be deemed to have been accepted for filing as of the date payment is received pursuant to 42 P.S. Section 21073(b). The Prothonotary may maintain an electronic file only and no paper file, with approval from the Court.
(Comment: As required by Pa.R.Civ.P. No. 205.4(c)(1) access to the CountySuite Portal shall be available at all times, except for routine maintenance; however, legal documents can only be reviewed by Prothonotary staff during normal office hours. Therefore, filers are cautioned to file required legal papers well in advance of any filing deadlines to enable timely correction and resubmission in the event a legal paper is not acceptable for filing.)
G. [Obligation of Registered eFile Users to Maintain Proper Delivery Information] Service of Legal Papers.
[Parties or attorneys who register to use the File & Serve system shall notify File and Serve Express within ten (10) days of any change in firm name, delivery address, fax number or e-mail address.]
Once an E-Filing has been accepted by the Prothonotary it shall be the responsibility of the filing party to provide to the sheriff the proper service fee and documents for original service and writs. The CountySuite Portal does not include legal service.
H. Obligation of registered E-File Users to Maintain Proper Delivery Information.
Parties or attorneys who register to use the CountySuite Portal system shall notify CountySuite Portal within ten days of any change in firm name, delivery address, fax number or e-mail address.
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 23-1319. Filed for public inspection September 29, 2023, 9:00 a.m.]
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