I advised in a blog post yesterday that the PA Supreme Court changed its internal operating procedures to delete standards for the Court to follow as to when to grant Petitions for Allowance of Appeal. The Court no longer needs internal guidance since the Court has now added standards in PA Rule of Appellate Procedure 1114. In the current Rule 1114 there were no standards, however, there was non-binding guidance contained in the Note to the Rule.
Now in the amended Rule 1114 the Note has been eliminated and what was previously in the note is now the standard. Pursuant to the Amendment, the following 7 standards have been added:
- An intermediate appellate court holding conflicts with another intermediate appellate court opinion;
- The holding of an intermediate appellate court conflicts with a holding of the PA or U.S. Supreme Court;
- The questions is one of first impression;
- The question is one of such substantial public importance as to require prompt and definitive resolution by the Court;
- The issue involves the constitutionality of a statute;
- The intermediate appellate court has so far departed from accepted judicial practices or so abused its discretion as to call for the exercise of the Court's supervisory authority;
- The intermediate appellate court has erroneously entered an order quashing or dismissing an appeal.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
