THE COURTS
Title 252—ALLEGHENY COUNTY RULES
ALLEGHENY COUNTY
Civil Division; Local Rules of the Court of Common Pleas; No. AD—2024-200-PJ; Rules Doc.
[54 Pa.B. 4114]
[Saturday, July 20, 2024]
Order of Court And Now, this 2nd day of July 2024, it is hereby Ordered that the following local rules of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Civil Division, adopted by the Board of Judges, shall be effective thirty (30) days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
ALLEGHENY COUNTY RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE 208.3(b)(3)
ALLEGHENY COUNTY RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE 212.7
ALLEGHENY COUNTY RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE 1303(a)(2)
By the Court
SUSAN EVASHAVIK DiLUCENTE,
President JudgeLocal Rule 208.3(b).
(3) Calendar Control Judge.
(a) The Calendar Control Judge shall hear the following:
(i) All motions in any case that [has been listed for trial or has appeared on a published trial list] appears on a published trial list shall be presented to the Calendar Control Judge. This includes all motions that would otherwise have been heard by the General Motions Judge or the Discovery Motions Judge.
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 and/or Plaintiff's Counsel 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 and/or Plaintiff's Counsel 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 and/or Plaintiff's Counsel 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.
(d) Failure to file the Certification required by subsection (a) and/or serve a copy of the Certification upon the Calendar Control section of the Civil Division as required by subsection (b) above shall result in the Plaintiff's Counsel being sanctioned by the Court $250.00. Where the Plaintiff is unrepresented, and/or where good cause is shown as to why the certification was not filed by Plaintiff's Counsel, the Court may elect not to impose the $250.00 sanction.
(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(a)(2). Failure to Appear for Hearing.
(1) If a party fails to appear for a scheduled arbitration hearing, the matter may, if all present parties agree, be transferred immediately to a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas for an ex parte hearing on the merits and entry of a non-jury verdict, from which there shall be no right to a trial de novo on appeal.
Note: This local rule results in the loss of the right to a trial de novo on appeal, as described in the local rule. A dismissal or judgment which results from this local rule will be treated as any other final judgment in a civil action, subject to Pa.R.C.P. 227.1.
(2) A non-jury verdict entered at a hearing held pursuant to Local Rule 1303(a)(2)(1) shall not exceed [$25,000] the arbitration limit set in Local Rule 1301(1)(a) (exclusive of interest and costs) to any party.
Editor's Note: Adopted October 4, 2006, effective December 4, 2006.
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 24-1011. Filed for public inspection July 19, 2024, 9:00 a.m.]
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