NORTHAMPTON COUNTY Rules of Civil Procedure N206 and N1035; Misc. No. 1998-CM-2451 [28 Pa.B. 1835] Order of Court And Now, this 3rd day of April, 1998, Northampton County Rules of Civil Procedure N206 (Motions and Rules--Notice of Intent to Present) and N1035 (Motion for Summary Judgment) are hereby amended as follows hereto, effective thirty (30) days after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
Seven (7) certified copies of the within rules shall be filed with the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts; two (2) certified copies shall be distributed to the Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin; and one (1) certified copy shall be filed with the Pennsylvania Civil Procedural Rules Committee. One (1) copy of these rules shall be kept available in the Office of the Clerk of Courts. A copy is directed to be published in the Northampton County Reporter.
By the Court
ROBERT A. FREEDBERG,
President JudgeRule N206. Motions and Rules. Notice of Intent to Present.
Motions and petitions which request a definitive order or decree and which are not governed by any other statute or rule of court may be presented to the appropriate Motions Judge in Motions Court only after a copy of the motion or petition and the proposed order of court have been served on all counsel of record and any unrepresented party at least three (3) business days prior to the intended date of presentation. Notice of the date, time and place of presentation must accompany the copy of the motion or petition and proposed order of court. Service may be made in any manner, including facsimile transmission, which results in the delivery of the required documents at least three (3) business days before the day of presentation. The presenting party must attach to the motion or petition a certification of compliance with this rule setting forth the date on which the motion or petition was served on counsel and unrepresented parties.
For purposes of this rule, a rule to show cause will not be considered a definitive order or decree unless it contains a stay of proceedings. If a rule contains a stay of proceedings, the notice requirements of this rule must be met before presentation will be permitted by the Court.
Explanatory Comment: The purpose of this rule is to foster the use of Motion Court practice for all matters which are not likely to require lengthy evidentiary hearings or involve argument on complex legal issues. Nevertheless, sufficient notice and receipt of the motion or petition and proposed order of court is required by law and fundamental fairness. Counsel desiring to take advantage of Motions Court practice must be diligent in complying with the notice requirement. For purposes of this rule, the use of the term ''business day'' and the computation of the required three (3) day notice period shall be governed by and construed consistent with Pa. R.C.P. 106 (Computation of Time).
Rule N1035. Motion for Summary Judgment.
A. A motion for summary judgment shall state specifically the grounds relied upon.
B. A motion for summary judgment shall be submitted for decision no later than ninety (90) days prior to the date scheduled for commencement of trial, unless otherwise allowed by order of court.
Comment: Pa.R.C.P. 1035.2 provides that motions for summary judgment are to be filed ''within such time as not to unreasonably delay trial.'' Rule of Judicial Administration 703 allows judges 90 days to decide matters prior to reporting a matter as undecided to the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts. In order to afford the court reasonable time to decide the summary judgment motion without delaying trial, and consistently with its responsibilities in other matters, the moving party must list the summary judgment motion on an argument list at least 90 days prior to the trial date and timely file a brief in support of the motion. See Rule N210(c).
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 98-594. Filed for public inspection April 17, 1998, 9:00 a.m.]
