In Re: Order Amending Rule 1920.33 of the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure

Summary

This document amends Pennsylvania Rule of Civil Procedure 1920.33 concerning joinder of related claims, equitable division of marital property, and enforcement. It establishes requirements for inventories and pre-trial statements, disclosures concerning assets, liabilities, income, witnesses, and exhibits, and sanctions for noncompliance or exceeding the scope of disclosed information.

Holdings

1. When a pleading or petition raises a claim for equitable division of marital property under Section 3502 of the Divorce Code, the parties must file and serve inventories identifying marital and claimed nonmarital assets and liabilities, applicable co-owners or co-debtors, and estimated values or amounts due.
2. Parties must file and serve pre-trial statements containing specified information concerning assets, liabilities, expert and other witnesses, exhibits, income, expenses, counsel fees, disputed tangible personal property, and proposed resolution of economic issues.
3. If a party fails to file a required inventory or pre-trial statement, the court may impose an appropriate sanction under Pennsylvania Rule of Civil Procedure 4019(c).
4. A party may be barred from offering testimony or introducing evidence supporting or opposing matters omitted from the pre-trial statement, or evidence inconsistent with or beyond its fair scope; the rule also permits an incomplete inventory when the party lacks comprehensive knowledge and allows omitted information to be supplied in the pre-trial statement.

Questions Presented

1. What requirements should govern inventories and pre-trial statements in claims for equitable division of marital property under Pennsylvania Rule of Civil Procedure 1920.33?
2. What sanctions and evidentiary consequences may apply when a party fails to file a required inventory or pre-trial statement, or offers information outside the fair scope of the pre-trial statement?

Disposition

other