Title 246--MINOR COURT CIVIL RULES PART I. GENERAL [246 PA. CODE CH. 200] Design of Forms [31 Pa.B. 7028] Introduction The Minor Court Rules Committee is planning to recommend that the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania adopt an entirely new Pa. R.C.P.D.J. No. 212 to provide for the design of forms used in district justice proceedings. The Committee has not submitted this proposal for review by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
The following explanatory Report highlights the Committee's considerations in formulating this proposal. The Committee's Report should not be confused with the official Committee Notes to the rules. The Supreme Court does not adopt the Committee's Notes or the contents of the explanatory Reports.
The text of the proposed rule precedes the Report.
We request that interested persons submit suggestions, comments, or objections concerning this proposal to the Committee through counsel, Michael F. Krimmel, Counsel, Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, Minor Court Rules Committee, 5035 Ritter Road, Suite 700, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055, or e-mail to: minorcourt.rules@supreme.court. state.pa.us no later than Thursday, January 24, 2002.
By the Minor Court Rules Committee:
FRED A. PIERANTONI, III
ChairAnnex A TITLE 246. MINOR COURT CIVIL RULES PART I. GENERAL CHAPTER 200. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION; GENERAL PROVISIONS Rule 212. Design of Forms.
The Court Administrator of Pennsylvania, in consultation with the Minor Court Rules Committee, shall design and publish forms necessary to implement these rules.
Adopted ______ , effective ______ .
REPORT Proposed Pa. R.C.P.D.J. No. 212 Design of Forms Proceedings in district justice courts, more so than in other courts, rely heavily on the use of preprinted standard forms. Forms are used for basic pleadings, notices, and virtually all other case-related documents. Most forms used in district justice proceedings are computer generated, produced by the District Justice Automated System (DJS). Traditionally, when individual rules have specified that a form is to be used for a certain document, the rules have made reference to ''a form prescribed by the State Court Administrator.'' In drafting proposed new rules and amendments to existing rules, the Committee has decided that the use of this language in individual rules is cumbersome and unnecessary.
As an alternative, the Committee proposes an entirely new Pa. R.C.P.D.J. No. 212 to be a general rule regarding the design of forms. In proposing such a rule, the Committee contemplates that references to forms in individual rules could be eliminated, except where the content of a form is to be expressly dictated by the rule.
The proposed new rule, which is modeled after Pa.R.Crim.P. 104, would provide that ''[t]he Court Administrator of Pennsylvania, in consultation with the Minor Court Rules Committee, shall design and publish forms necessary to implement these rules.''
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 01-2318. Filed for public inspection December 28, 2001, 9:00 a.m.]
