Rule 5104. Local Rule. Prohibition.
(a) Content of Local Rule. Every judicial district shall promulgate a local rule of judicial administration pursuant to Pa.R.J.A. 103(c) establishing the judicial district’s policies and procedures for the custody of exhibits in court proceedings. The local rule shall:
(1) designate the custodian to safeguard and maintain exhibits introduced in a court proceeding;
(2) establish standards to ensure exhibits are filed with the records office for incorporation into the docket no later than five business days after the end of the court proceeding;
(3) establish standards for the reproduction of oversized or voluminous documentary exhibits; and
(4) establish standards for the maintenance and security of bulky or oversized non-documentary exhibits during and after the court proceeding.
(b) Optional Provision. The judicial district may include a provision in its local rule to exclude record hearings that may be appealed de novo to a court of common pleas or upon which exceptions or objections can be filed to a court of common pleas from the provisions of this chapter.
(c) Prohibition. The automated systems of the Unified Judicial System (e.g., Common Pleas Case Management System, Pennsylvania Appellate Case Court Management System, and PACFile) shall not be used for submitting or storing exhibits as required by this chapter.
Comment: A local rule includes an Internal Operating Procedure adopted by an appellate court. See Pa.R.J.A. 5101(a)(5) (definition of local rule).
A ‘‘custodian’’ will either be a member of court staff, e.g., court reporter, clerk of court, hearing officer, or the proponent of the exhibit. See Pa.R.J.A. 5101(a)(2) (definition of custodian). When the proponent is designated as the custodian, the proponent will fulfill all the responsibilities of a custodian in accordance with Pa.R.J.A. 5102.
A local court security committee makes recommendations to the president judge on protocols, policies, and procedures that should be implemented to protect the public, court personnel, and court facilities in the event of an emergency. See Pa.R.J.A. 1954 (Court Security). The judicial district may consult with the local court security committee to identify best practices for the handling of exhibits.
The local rule shall designate the filing method, which may include electronic filing, although not via the automated systems of the Unified Judicial System. The designated method of filing exhibits with the records office will depend on the capabilities available to the judicial district. It is anticipated that some judicial districts will require the custodian to file exhibits with the records office immediately following the close of the court proceeding. Other judicial districts may require the proponents to file exhibits with the records office no later than five business days after the close of the court proceeding.
Subdivision (b) permits a judicial district to exempt certain record hearings from the provisions of this chapter by establishing a local rule. Under this exception, for example, proceedings before hearing officers in divorce, custody, support, delinquency, and dependency matters could be excluded from the general rules. While these proceedings are of record, some judicial districts may find that the burden of compliance outweighs the benefit of a statewide procedure for records handling.
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