2113 Amendment of rules 227.4 governing entry of judgment upon praecipe of a party and 237 governing notice of praecipe for final judgment; no. 486 civil procedural rules; doc. no. 5

Title 231--RULES
OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

PART I. GENERAL

[ 231 PA. CODE CH. 200 ]

Amendment of Rules 227.4 Governing Entry of Judgment upon Praecipe of a Party and 237 Governing Notice of Praecipe for Final Judgment; No. 486 Civil Procedural Rules; Doc. No. 5

[37 Pa.B. 6201]
[Saturday, November 24, 2007]

Order

Per Curiam:

   And Now, this 2nd day of November, 2007, Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure 227.4 and 237 are amended to read as follows.

   This Order shall be processed in accordance with Pa.R.J.A. 103(b) and shall be effective January 1, 2008.

Annex A

TITLE 231. RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

PART I. GENERAL

CHAPTER 200. BUSINESS OF COURTS

Rule 227.4. Entry of Judgment upon Praecipe of a Party.

   In addition to the provisions of any Rule of Civil Procedure or Act of Assembly authorizing the prothonotary to enter judgment upon praecipe of a party and except as otherwise provided by Rule 1042.72(e)(3), the prothonotary shall, upon praecipe of a party:

   (1)  enter judgment upon a nonsuit by the court, the verdict of a jury or the decision of a judge following a trial without jury, if

*      *      *      *      *

Rule 237. Notice of Praecipe for Final Judgment.

   No praecipe for entry of judgment [on] upon a nonsuit by the court, a verdict of a jury or [for judgment on] a decision [in] of a judge following a trial without a jury shall be accepted by the prothonotary unless it includes a certificate that a copy of the praecipe has been mailed to each other party who has appeared in the action or to the attorney of record for each other party.

Explanatory Comment

   Rule 227.4(1) provides for the entry of judgment upon a verdict of a jury or the decision of a judge without a jury when no motion for post-trial relief is filed or, if a motion is filed, the court does not timely dispose of it. Rule 237 provides that the prothonotary shall not accept any praecipe of judgment on a verdict or for judgment on a decision in a trial without a jury ''unless it includes a certificate that a copy of the praecipe has been mailed to each other party who has appeared in the action or to the attorney of record for each other party.'' However, relief from a nonsuit entered by the court is also subject to a motion for post-trial relief (Rule 227.1(a)(3)), but Rule 227.4(1) and Rule 237 omit any reference to the nonsuit. The amendment remedies this omission by amending Rule 227.1(a)(1) and Rule 237 to include a nonsuit by the court together with the verdict of a jury and the decision of a judge.

By the Civil Procedural
Rules Committee

R. STANTON WETTICK, Jr.,   
Chair

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 07-2113. Filed for public inspection November 21, 2007, 9:00 a.m.]