On April 17, 2024, President Judge Shawn D. Meyers signed an Order adopting a new Local Rule for Franklin and Fulton counties, which is codified at 39th Jud.Dist.O.C. Rule 14.8.1. This new Local Rule requires the completion...more
“Over there” in this context refers to the Orphans’ Court – theoretically a “division” of the Court of Common Pleas (the trial court) in each Pennsylvania county. Orphans’ Court matters include adoptions, name changes, will...more
With the pace of bank mergers and consolidations showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon, trust officers and administrators continue to be tasked with reviewing the past administration of old trusts and integrating the...more
The 2016 amendments to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court Orphan’s Court Rules brought a slight shift in Orphan’s Court litigation. Aiming to provide a uniform standard of practice, the new Rules closely align with the...more
Effective on January 6, 2018, the PA Supreme Court’s “Public Access Policy” adds significant new requirements related to information contained in documents filed in Pennsylvania’s courts, including the Orphans’ Court Division...more
As counsel to fiduciaries across our great Commonwealth, I was beginning to despair that changing one’s trustee was becoming as easy as changing the oil in one’s car. In the seminal case of Trust Under Agreement of Edward...more
The Attorney Client Privilege is sacrosanct. It is the one privilege that Courts consistently uphold. So, it may surprise you to learn that there is a long-standing fiduciary exception to the attorney client privilege....more
As part of an ongoing effort to standardize and clarify the rules that govern Orphans' Court practice, the Orphans' Court Procedural Rules Committee intends to recommend that the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania replace Orphans’...more
Do you remember the round of applause and cheers that went out across this great Commonwealth when Section 7710.1 was enacted? Finally, our legislature gave us a statute that made sense and could be broadly applied. Section...more