2329 Amendments to the rules of civil procedure relating to domestic relations matters; recommendation 85

Title 231--RULES
OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

PART I.  GENERAL

[231 PA. CODE CH. 1910]

Amendments to the Rules of Civil Procedure Relating to Domestic Relations Matters; Recommendation 85

[36 Pa.B. 7236]
[Saturday, December 2, 2006]

   The Domestic Relations Procedural Rules Committee is planning to recommend that the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania amend the Rules of Civil Procedure relating to domestic relations matters as set forth herein. This proposal has not been submitted for review by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

   Notes and explanatory comments which appear with proposed amendments have been inserted by the committee for the convenience of those using the rules. Reports, notes and comments will not constitute part of the rules and will not be officially adopted or promulgated by the Supreme Court.

   The committee solicits and welcomes comments and suggestions from all interested persons prior to submission of this proposal to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Please submit written comments no later than Friday, January 19, 2007 directed to:

   Patricia A. Miles, Esquire
Counsel, Domestic Relations Procedural Rules Committee
5035 Ritter Road, Suite 700
Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania 17055
FAX [phone]
E-mail:  [e-mail]

   Deleted material is bold and bracketed. New material is bold.

By the Domestic Relations
Procedural Rules Committee

NANCY P. WALLITSCH, Esq.,   
Chair

Annex A

TITLE 231.  RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE

PART I.  GENERAL

CHAPTER 1910.  ACTIONS FOR SUPPORT

Rule 1910.25-3.  Civil Contempt. Conference Summary. Order. Hearing De Novo.

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   (b)  The court, without hearing the parties, may enter an appropriate order after consideration of the conference summary. [The order shall state] Each party shall be provided with a copy of the order and written notice that any party may, within [ten] twenty days after the date of receipt or the date of the mailing [of a copy] of the order, whichever occurs first, file a written demand with the domestic relations section for a hearing before the court.

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Rule 1910.25-4.  Civil Contempt. Alternative Procedure. Record Hearing. Report. Exceptions. Order.

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   (c)  Within [ten] twenty days after the conclusion of the hearing, any party may file exceptions to the report or any part thereof, to rulings on objections, to statements or findings of fact, to conclusions of law, or to any other matters occurring during the hearing. Each exception shall set forth a separate objection precisely and without discussion. Matters not covered by exceptions are deemed waived unless, prior to the entry of the order, leave is granted to file exceptions raising those matters.

   (d)  If no exceptions are filed within the [ten] twenty-day period, the court shall review the report and, if approved, enter an order.

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Rule 1910.25-5.  Civil Contempt. Contempt Order. Incarceration.

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   (b)  An order committing a respondent to jail for civil contempt of a support order shall specify the conditions the fulfillment of which will result in the release of the respondent.

   (c)  The court may order the respondent to obtain employment with income that can be verified and is subject to income attachment. If the respondent willfully fails to comply with an order to obtain such employment, the court may commit the respondent to jail upon adjudication for indirect criminal contempt, provided the respondent is afforded all of the procedural safeguards available to criminal defendants.

   Official Note:  The time periods set forth in Rules 1910.25 through 1910.25-6 are for the benefit of the plaintiff, and not for the defendant. The goal is the prompt initiation of contempt proceedings because of the importance of ongoing support payments. The time periods in no way limit the right of either the domestic relations section or the plaintiff to proceed with a contempt action.

Explanatory Comment--2007

   Parental support of children is a fundamental requirement of law and public policy. Absent an inability to maintain employment or acquire other income or assets, sanction in the form of incarceration may be imposed by the court to compel compliance and provide an incentive to obey the law. The contempt process, which should be used as a last resort, is necessary to impose coercive sanctions upon those obligors whose circumstances provide no recourse to the court to compel payment or a good faith effort to comply. Appellate opinions have made it clear that an obligor who is in civil contempt cannot be incarcerated without the present ability to fulfill the conditions the court imposes for release. See, Godfrey v. Godfrey, 894 A.2d 776 (Pa. Super. 2006); Hyle v. Hyle, 868 A.2d 601 (Pa. Super. 2005). However, the courts also have noted that recalcitrant obligors may be imprisoned for indirect criminal contempt if afforded the proper procedural safeguards.

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 06-2329. Filed for public inspection December 1, 2006, 9:00 a.m.]